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COPYRIGHTED 
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CHARLES TOMLIN 



BRADLEY BROTHERS 

>V. J. BRADLEY, SUCCESSOR 

PRIXTERS 
200 S. Tenth Street 

PHILADELPHIA 



Ind 



ex 



PAGE 

Chapter I — Jersey Land 7 

Chapter II — Some Slaves of Cape May County 9 

Chapter III — Leaves from History ' 13 

Chapter V — Shingle Mining and the Last Shingle Miner 19 

Chapter VI— Hot Sugar. Tobacco 24 

Chapter VII— At Cape May Point 21 

Chapter VIII— What to Talk About 31 

Chapter IX — Trees 32 

Chapter X — Ira and John 39 

Chapter XI— Noted Sights 41 

Chapter XII — The Freeze to Death Year 51 

Chapter XIII— Indian Trails 53 

Chapter XIV — Cape May Tornadoes 55 

Chapter XV — The King's Highway 59 

Chapter XVI— The Key 61 

Chapter XVII — Plants for Food and Medicine 62 

Chapter XVIII— Missionary to the Lenape Indians 63 

Chapter XIX— What Kind of a Model Will You Be? 66 

Chapter XX — The Great September Gale 68 

Chapter XXI — Sweet Sixteen 74 

Chapter XXII — Almost Ninety-tive 76 

Chapter XXIII— Skirmish at Town Bank 79 

Chapter XXIV— The Douglass Family 82 

Chapter XXV— A Heroine Where I'd Live. Our Albino 90 

Chapter XXVI — A Prisoner in Dixie 93 

Chapter XXVII— A Romance Ill 



THIS BOOK 

is respectively dedicated to my pupils of the Public Schools in 
the Counties of Cape May, Cumberland and Atlantic, in the 
State of New Jersey, whom I have had the honor of trying to 
instruct, viz. : 

1875-6 — Swaintown (Erma). 

1876— West Creek (Eldora). 

1876--7-8 Heislerville. 

1878-9-80-81 Ludlam's, Dennisville. 

1881-2 — Swainton (Erma). 

1882-3 — Academy, Dennisville. 

1883-4— Dias Creek. 

1884-5- Academy, Dennisv.''k. 

1885-6-7-8-9— Goshen. 

1889-90— Green Creek. 

1890-1-2-3-4 — Academy, Dennisville. 

1894-5-6— Port Norris. 

1896-7-8-9-Newport. 

1899-1900-1-2-3— Dias Creek. 

1903-4-5-6-7-8— Woodbine. 

1908-9 — Dennis Township. 

1909-10— Cape May Point. 

1910-11— Rio Grande. 

1911-12-13 — Tuckahoe, Weymouth Township. 

1913-14— Dias Creek. 



CHAPTER I. 

JERSEY LAND. 
(Tune, Dixie Land.) 
So glad I live in the land of peaches 
Down nearby the Cape May beaches, 
Look away ! Look away ! Look away ! Jersey land ; 
New Jersey land where I was born, 
Early on one frosty morning, 
Look away ! Look away ! Look away ! Jersey land : 

Chorus : 

Then I'm glad I am in Jersey, 

Hoo-ray ! Hoo-ray ! 
In Jersey Land I'll take my stand 
To live and die in Jersey, 

Away, away, 
Away down in South Jersey, 

Away, away. 
Away down in South Jersey, 

The land of oysters, clams and mosquitoes, 

Potpie, fish and sweet potatoes. 

Look away ! Look away ! Look away ! Jersey land ; 

There's hills of sand and best of bathing. 

Sleighing snows with ice and skating, 

Look away ! Look away ! Look away ! Jersey land : 

Oh, sing of South Jersey's fragrant air. 

Of its health and beauty everywhere. 

Look away ! Look away ! Look away ! Jersey land : 

Of its lassies fair and its lads so bright, 

Its schools, farms, factories and electric lights. 

Look away ! Look away ! Look away ! Jersey land : 



8 

It is washed by the old Atlantic blue 

And by the noble Delaware too, 

Look away ! Look away ! Look away ! Jersey land 

The sounds are fine for sport and game, 

The beach resorts are far from tame, 

Look away ! Look away ! Look away ! Jersey land : 

The ocean may chill, mosquitoes may bite. 

But Delaware Bay is warmed just right. 

Look away ! Look away ! Look away ! Jersey land : 

For a boy to bathe both day and night. 

So shout South Jersey with all your might, 

Look away ! Look away ! Look away ! Jersey land : 

Sure this is the land of cream and honey, 

Everything is grown for money. 

Look away ! Look away ! Look away ! Jersey land : 

Every mother says to her sonny, 

"Grow up great and be somebody," 

Look away ! Look away ! Look away ! Jersey land : 

The boys reply "We will do our best 

And all good knowledge we will test," 

Look away ! Look away ! Look away ! Jersey land : 

The girls reply, "We are up-to-date," 

This age we'll help make good and great," 

Look away ! Look away ! Look away ! Jersey land : 

All honor to our sires who chose this spot. 

Not frigid cold nor torrid hot; 

Look away ! Look away ! Look away ! Jersey land : 

As Washington's patriots brave and true. 

They in the sixties (1861-5) wore the blue. 

Look away! Look away! Look away! Jersey land: 



CHAPTER II 



SOME SLAVES OF CAPE MAY CO., N. J. 



Near the N. W. Corner of the Methodist Episcopal Cem- 
etery, in Goshen, N, J., is a grave marked "Lauring Coatsman, 
aged 98 years. Faithful Unto Death." 

This marks the grave of a colored woman known most of 
her life by the name of "Vinie". She was a slave and manu- 
mitted by John Hand, October 26, 1803, as Vina Armour, 
being at that time over 21 and under 40 years of age. There 
is a lady now (1913) living in Philadelphia who remembers 
hearing her mother tell of a remark made by said lady's father 
upon a very cold night, "If Bill Coach gets down drunk to- 
night he will freeze to death" and he did. He was Vinie's 
husband. 

Vinie seems to have been born about 1771 and to have 
lived till 1869, having lived through the Revolution, the war of 
1812, the Mexican and the Civil war days. 

Vinie was a very estimable person, loved and respected by 
many. The tombstones that now mark her grave were placed 
there by Mrs. Deborah (Wm.) Garrison, a daughter of John 
and Deborah Hand, whom Vinie had probably served many a 
day as nurse. Mrs. Garrison, who, 15 years later, died at the 
age of 86 years, looked after Vinie and made her comfortable 
in her old age. 

Many remember Vinie by her purge beer and cake stand 
which she kept at many a vendue, ship launching or other big- 
gathering. Her beer was made of herbs.barks etc. selected 
and gathered by herself, being quite bitter and purgative. 

RUMY 

Rumy, a slave in Nathaniel Holmes's family, lies buried in 
the Baptist cemetery at Cape ]\Iay Court House, N. J., beside 



10 

whose tombstone has sprung up a cedar tree so close thereto 
that it is difficult to read the name. She died Feb. 2, 1858, in 
her 83rd year. 

Many of the colored people of this County who live at 
Cold Spring, and to the east of Goshen and near Swain Station 
seem to be descendants of the early slaves of Cape May 
County. 

ELSIE 

Elsie who afterward became the wife of Rev. John West, 
was a slave in Jedediah Tomlin's family and in his will made 
in 1815 he wills his servant girl Elsie Smith, whom he pur- 
chased of Samuel Jones, to his wife Elizabeth, from his death to 
December 25, 1826, and when set free she was to have two 
suits of clothes, one common and one Sunday suit. 

Elsie is remembered as a devout Christian of a refined 
and obliging maner. She has descendants living now near 
Goshen, N. J. She did not remain a slave as late as 1826, be- 
cause her freedom was purchased by the man whom she 
married. Her mistress also remarried and became the wife 
of Cresse Townsend some months before Elsie's term of ser- 
vice as a slave expired. 

Aaron Leaming, I, who died in 1747, left slaves. Elisha 
Hand and Richard Crawford, Appraisers of his property val- 
ued them as follows: Tony 15 pounds, No Name 40 pounds 
Cyrus 35 pounds, Cyrus 28 pounds, Sam 14 pounds, Jonah 7 
pounds, Joann 34 pounds. Dido, daughter of Joann 25 pounds. 
Amy, daughter of Peggy, 15 pounds, Maria 8 pounds. 

The original owners of slaves were compelled to care for 
them in old age. 

SLAVES OF CAPE MAY COUNTY, N. J. 



SLAVES OF MIDDLE TOWNSHIP. 

Ishmael Armour, manumitted by Levi Smith in 1803 ; 
Vina Armour, manumitted by John Hand in 1803; Priscilla 



11 

Anderson, manumitted by Joseph Mulford in 1808; Ishmael 
Armour, aged 25, manumitted by John Townsend in 1826; 
Edward Cox, aged 35, manumitted by Persons Learning in 
1804; Abel Cox, manumitted by Persons Leaming in 1806; 
Amy Coachman, manumitted by Aaron and Furman Leaming 
in 1808 ; Flowra Cox, aged 32, manumitted by Philip Stites in 
1802, wife of Abel Cox; James Green, manumitted by Abigail 
Townsend in 1812; Armindy, manumitted by Nathaniel Hol- 
mes in 1808; Harmon Lively, manumitted by Nathaniel Hol- 
mes, afterward of Trenton, N. J., in 1815; Marshal Peterson, 
manumitted by Robert M. Holmes in 1815; Susan Turner, 
manumitted by Robert M. Holmes in 1819; Betty Jacocks, 
manumitted by Judith Townsend and Humphrey Swain in 
1823 ; Eace, manumitted by Seth Hand in 1803 ; Selance, man- 
umitted by Christopher Ludlam in 1803 ; Scene Turner, man- 
umitted by Persons Leaming in 1807; Derrick Turner, man- 
umitted by Furman Leaming, late of Middle, now of Philadel- 
phia, in 1819; Ruhama Scott, manumitted by Humphrey Stites 
in 1806; Simeon Taylor, manumitted by Christopher Smith in 
1815; Bethula Mingo, manumitted by Elijah Townsend in 
1807; Elizabeth Jacock, manumitted by Elijah Townsend in 
1811. 

SLAVES OF DENNIS TOWNSHIP. 

Jethro Alingo, manumitted by Nathaniel Holmes in 1834; 
Isaac and Amy Jackson were slaves of Henry Ludlam. He 
had them to get married. They raised several children. 
There are many people now living who remember their son 
Augustus Caesar Jackson. 

SLAVES OF UPPER TOWNSHIP. 

Marshal Briant, manumitted by Thomas Beesley, in 1832 ; 
Benjamin Coachman, Jr., manumitted by Jeremiah Hand, of 
Lf^pper, in 1806 ;4 Francis Coachman, manumitted by Jacob 
Godfrey, in 1810; Dempcey Collins, manumitted by Jacob 



12 

Willets in 1816; Judith Somers, manumitted by Elizabeth 
Ludlam in 1806; Robert Smith, manumitted by John Van 
Gilder, Dec. 2, 1809. He had purchased the slave one day 
before for $100, from James Godfrey of Maurice River Town- 
ship, Cumberland County, and of Nicholas Godfrey, of Wey- 
mouth Township, Gloucester County. Negro Derrick was a 
slave in the family of Parmenas Corson of Seaville, and was 
for a long time a regular attendant of Calvary Baptist Church. 
We think he lies buried in the family plot of his master at Pal- 
ermo. 

SLAVES OF LOWER TOWNSHIP. 

James Lively, manumitted by Jesse and Elias Hughes in 
1805 ; Caesar, manumitted by Thomas H. and Israel Hughes in 
1812; Job Moor, manumitted by Thomas H. Hughes in 1828; 
Peter Murkin, manumitted by Aaron Hughes in 1818; Anth- 
ony Wanton manumitted by James R. Hughes in 1817; Nancy 
Coachman, manumitted by John Stites in 1802 ; Orris Cox, 
manumitted by Robert Cox in 1832 ; Dinah, manumitted by 
Ann Edmunds in 1808 ; Susan, manumitted by Joseph Hughes 
in 1805. 



The number of slaves in Cape May County, N. J., were 
in 1738, 42; 1790. 141; 1800, 98; 1810, 81; 1820, 28; 1830, 3. 

There is a deed for a colored burying ground a mile or 
two north of Cape May Court House, one grave has a marked 
granite stone on which is cut the name Angelina Taylor. 
Several persons who had been slaves are said to have been 
buried there. Among them Aunt Thilda, Cupbalo and wife, 
Prudie. Aunt Peggy Seagraves, L'ncle Alpheus Seagraves, 
Sr., Alpheus Seagraves, Jr. 



CHAPTER III. 



LEAVES FROM HISTORY. 



Arranged by Charles Tomlin from ''Scheyichbi and the 
Strand," by Bdzvard S. Wheeler. 



August 28, 1609, Henry Hudson in the Half Moon sailed 
into Delaware bay, and not finding the N. W. pasage to India 
sailed north along the New Jersey coast, anchoring inside of 
Sandy Hook September 3rd. • 

Cornelius Jacobson May, who in 1614 commanded the 
Fortune from Holland and explored from Manhattan to Mar- 
tha's Vineyard, came again in 1620 in a vessel called the Glad 
Tidings, and carefully explored Delaware Bay and river, then 
returning to Holland reported certain new populous and fruit- 
ful lands along the Delaware river. 

In 1622 May came in the New Netherland to New Nether- 
land as first Director, with thirty families, mostly Walloons. 
18 Walloons were left at Manhattan, others at Fort. Orange 
(now Albany, N. Y.), also five miles below Philadelphia on the 
Jersey shore Fort Nassau was completed, and four couples of 
Waloons, who had been married on the New Netherland during 
her two months' voyage, were sent here in June in a yacht to 
abide. They remained unharmed during May's directorship 
and until about 1645 or 7. 

The Indians were as quite as lambs, and traded with all 
freedom imaginable, for May acted in the spirit of the instruc- 
tions received from his superiors in Holland, who wrote '"Tis 
better to govern by love and friendship than by force." 

Admirers of Captain May have reason to be proud that 
the southern cape of New Jersey bears the name of May, a 
study of whose life recalls only deeds of courage and goodness 
such as confer an honest fame in the history of time and crown 
with happiness the pure in heart amid the glories of eternity. 



14 

As Superintendent of the company of Charter of Freedom 
and Exemptions, Pieterzen De Fries sent the ship Whale under 
the command of Pieter Heyes to Delaware bay, founding in 
1631 Swandale in the rich territory selected in 1629 for Goodyn 
and Blommaert. Swandale flourished for a time, but on ac- 
count of difficulties with the Indians the people were kilUed 
and the village burned. 

DeVries afterward in 1633 came over as patroon and 
commander of Swandale and Cape May. He captured wild 
turkeys weighing as much as 36 pounds. He found fur trad- 
ing more valuable than the whale fishery. In 1643, on his way 
to Virginfa, he was again in Delaware bay. David Pieterzen 
DeVries was one of the finest characters of New Netherland 
history. A man of the people; a foe to despotism, injustice 
and cruelty. The Indians trusted him as a Swanekin "who 
never lied like the others." His tact and discrimination more 
than once saved the province from destruction. Though fill- 
ing only a subordinate position, DeVries was by nature and ex- 
perience equally commendable as a man, a citizen and a states- 
man. It would be untrue to history and unjust to him and 
his creed not to record in addition the fact that the first resi- 
dent patroon and owner of Cape May was a man of religious 
sentiments, in principle, after the best Ideal, a devout and con- 
sistent Christian. 

September 22, 1909, the people of Delaware held at Lewes 
a celebration and unveiled a monument of DeVries, on which 
is inscribed "Erected by the State of Delaware to commemor- 
ate the settlement on this spot of the first Dutch colony under 
DeVries A.D. 1631." Here was the cradling of a state. That 
Delaw^are exists as a separate state was due to this colony." 
State and U. S. officers, U. S. Minister from the Netherlands, 
as well as war ships from both countries took part in this cele- 
bration. 

Gillet Hosset and Peter Heyes came from Swandale, Del- 
aware, to the Jersey shore as agents of Goodyn and Blommaert 
and bought of ten Indian chiefs, on May 5th, 1630, a tract of 



15 

land twelve miles along the shore of the bay from Cape May 
Point to the north, and twelve miles inland above and including 
Cape May. 

The lands on the northern and eastern shores of Delaware 
bay were in possession of the great and influential but peace- 
able Indian tribe called Lenni Lennape, from whom must have 
been obtained the original title to Cape May. As Hosset 
sailed over the Delaware, he saw a roadstead large enough for 
all the commerce of Europe to ride secure ; dense forests were 
near the shore, the waters swarmed with fish, the marshes 
abounding in water-fowl, and game birds, also great and small 
animals for food and furs. Wm. Penn mentions tnrkevs 
weighing from 45 to 50 pounds each. 

The Indian resorted to the shore of the Atlantic not alone 
for health and comfort, but to make money, and to dry the lus- 
cious bivalve on white oak splints for their winter store. In 
Cape May a ''mint" was kept in operation, where suskauhock 
was coined in the form of beads from shells of the quahog and 
strung on strings. This was sometimes woven into belts. This 
is why the great beds of shells found hereabouts are in such 
small pieces. They were broken to secure the dark part of the 
shell, as this formed the most valuable money, though there was 
good white wampum made of the stem of the periwinkle, yet 
only one-half as valuable as the suskauhock. 

All honor to Wm. Penn for the great work he did after 
1682 for the great state that bears his name, but let it be re- 
membered that in West Jersey his inspired mind and benevo- 
lent heart FIRST wrought out his model of a state between 
1675 and 1680, and there alone his purpose first became the 
law and rule of a happy people. Every acre of New Jersey 
has been fairly bought of the Indian tribes. West Jersey is 
unstained by Indian blood. Indians, Puritans, Quakers, and 
Covenanters, held in peace and universal prosperity the soil of 
New Jersey. 

John Worlidge and John Budd. coming down from Bur- 
lington, laid off a tract of land in Cape May county for Dr. 



16 

Coxe in 1687, on which he buih Coxe Hall as a residence. 
Cape May was cut off from the north by vast impassable 
cedar swamps that extended from the seashore to the bay. 
Cape May was set off as a county in 1692. 

America won in the war of 1812-14, because of finer 
modeled, better rigged, and more "handy" vessels ; and because 
on those vessels, for the first time, long range guns and cannon 
were supplied with "sights," and trained with the deadly ac- 
curacy of the rifle on the mark. It was precision against mass 
or as a thunderbolt to a hail storm. Many Cape May men 
were very active in this war. 

In closing, we again pay homage to the noble lives, deeds 
and influence of May, DeVries and Penn on and for West 
Jersey. 




CHAPTER IV. 



PIRATES. 

Captain Kidd and also Blackbird visited New Jersey. 
Once when the latter was off our coast and landed east of 
Burleigh one Uncle Aaron and his wife aunt Becky were on a 
cowshed intently watching his operations as they killed cattle 
and loaded them into small boats taking them aboard the ship 
to dress and clean. Aunt Becky kept stepping around when 
all of a sudden a cannon was fired which caused her to step a 
little more lustily and farther backward, when all of a sudden 
she tumbled off backward in a heap a distance of twelve or 
fifteen feet. This fall almost unjointed her neck, and being 
otherwise injured it was a long time before she fully recovered 
remembering to the end of her days Blackbeard's visit near 
her home. 

BLOCK HOUSE 

The last old block house in the county with its port holes, 
palisades and made of the choicest white cedar logs, seems to 
have stood at Mosquito Point, in N. W. Dennis. The logs 
were taken for a time and used as a corn crib but finally con- 
verted into lumber. 

Two Ludlam brothers settled, one on the north and the 
other on the south side of Dennis Creek, and this block hovise 
stood near the road now leading to Jake's Landing, where 
most likely was first the fording place, then a ferry, then far- 
ther east was built the old stage road, the remains 
of which remain today on the meadow of John Williams. 
In later years came the present route over the once covered 
bridge. 

OLD FORT. 

In South Dennis at the junction of Sluice and Den- 
nis creeks is the foundation of an old fort said to antedate the 



days of the Revolutionary war. Said fort was placed and main- 
tained there to protect the settlers hereabouts from the depre- 
dations of pirates and privateers. Great were the hardships 
and privations of our forefathers and greater yet their perse- 
verance, determination and ability. Savages, pirates, a wild 
country, many things of which we little dream did they en- 
counter and yet they endured and conquered. 




CHAPTER V. 



SHINGLE MINING AND THE LAST OF OUR 
SHINGLE MINERS. " 



Out of the lowlands near Dennisville, N. J., millions of 
dug up shingles have been mined. 

To the best of my knowledge the last miner, an intelli- 
gent, clear minded gentlemen and a lover of history, was 
Charles Pitman Robart who died in 1907, in his 79th year. 

One of his greatest finds consisted of a log four feet in 
diameter and 25 feet in length. On top of this was another 
log fully as large and above both was a partially decayed 
stump from which had been taken a tree of about the same 
diameter. Growing in the decayed part of this stump was a 
live tree fully a foot in diameter in a good healthy condition. 
The under log must have lain there for centuries. 

This tree was much better than the ordinary from the 
fact it was so fine a rift and perfectly sound throughout and 
so far up.it before any limbs were found. The shingles there- 
from sold for $75. Trees as large as this were frequently 
found but they would often turn out to be knotty or hard. 

These miners took an iron rod six to eight feet long shar- 
pened at one 'end and by pushing it down in meadow or swamp 
lands would progue until they struck a log. Then beginning 
near the top end would saw ofif under the mud a piece of the 
log about a foot in length, called the "cut-ofif," which in water 
would turn over pop up and float like cork. They, by its smell, 
could tell if it was a wind fall or a broke down. 

The piece would also tell them if the tree was boxy, 
twisted or straight grained. If it proved to be desirable then 
with a cross cut saw, having a long handle, the tree was sawn 
free of its limbs and roots along its whole length upon two 
sides. This freed it of most limbs and roots that held it fast. 



20 

The butt end was then sawed loose and pried to the surface. 
Blocks, pries etc. were then used until the whole log was 
brought nearly to or upon the surface. It was then sawed into 
proper lengths for shingles. These blocks were then split in- 
to smaller blocks called dolts. A dolt would make four shin- 
gles. These rough shingles after being split from the dolts 
were dried in the sun, then shaved with a drawing knife and 
made straight on the edge with a jointer so as to lay close edge 
to edge. They were also usually butted, that is, the butt cut 
off across its entire width at an angle of about 45 degrees with 
a tool of triangular shape having three legs with cross pieces 
near their center to which was fastened a long knife, its 
outer end had a handle by which it was worked up and down 
while its lower end was stationary turning only around a bolt. 
This butting machine was about three feet in height. Many 
of these shingles w'ere six inches wide and usually eighteen in- 
ches long and one-half inch thick at the but end tapering grad- 
ually to a point at the other end. 

It was not customary to mine logs that were more than 
six feet below the surface of the ground. 

A quarter share went to the owner of the land when the 
mining was in live timber, but a one-eighth share elsewhere. 

We can best continue this sketch by quoting from a letter 
from ]\Ir. Edwin Robart, son of Mr. Charles P. Robart. He 
savs "father was the son of Samuel Robart and of German 
descent. Father's great- grandfather lived in the days of the 
Revolution near Great Egg Harbor Inlet, and was one of six- 
teen to man a large boat that was propelled with oars, having 
on its bow a small cannon. When ever they saw a merchant- 
man becalmed off the Inlet, this crew would man their boat 
and investigate. If it proved to be an English vessel, she 
would be taken as a prize and brought into the Inlet. 

Once this crew sighted what looked like an English mer- 
chantman becalmed, so taking their boat they rowed toward 
the same. When they were near enough they discharged their 
cannon and hailed the ship to surrender, when lo ! the ship 



21 

dropped her ports and run out four guns. It was an English 
sloop-of-war, and such rowing as those men did soon brought 
them out of range. 

My experience with my father in removing these logs 
from the soil and converting them into shingles was, from the 
time I arrived at the age of ten until I was sixteen years of 
age, always in the summer when out of school. 




C P. ROBART 

Shingles were secured in Brick Landing swamp. South 
Dennis, head of Dennis Creek, back and on the meadows be- 
low what is known as Mosquito Point. On the bald meadows 
where there was no sign of any swamp below on banks of 
what is called the Folly, a stream, one and a half miles long, 
flowing from the north into Dennis Creek, about three miles 
below Jake's landing. 



22 

No doubt the greatest place where these logs were found 
was in what is known as Robbin's swamp. This swamp was 
cut off about 1864, enabling miners to investigate the bottom. 
The result was that hundreds of thousands of these shingles 
were taken out as there were several shingle miners at that 
time. Roads had been made from poles and bark to get the 
live timber out, and these same roads were used to cart out 
these shingles. Shingles secured in most places had to be car- 
ried out on the backs of men and boys to the creek and then 
taken by boat to the landing. 

Besides supplying the local market, these shingles were 
sent by regular packet boats to be sold in Philadelphia or towns 
on the Delaware River. Sometimes they would be taken to 
some place in the state of Delaware and there traded for corn 
and the corn brought to Dennis Creek landing and then sold to 
some dealer in grain before any money could be realized by the 
miner. Father secured thousands of these shingles in what is 
known as Hawk swamp. Here is where my mind is fully 
clear, as here so many had to be carried on our backs to the 
roads. I being a boy could carry but twelve of these shingles 
if they were shaven as soon as they were dug, which was quite 
frequently the case. If the shingles could be dug and allowed 
to dry thoroughly a man could make much more headway in 
shaving them. Father was considered a fast workman and 
could shave six hundred a day. With things favorable he 
could mine and get ready for market one thousand shingles 
per week which usually sold for $16.00. In later years when 
the sawed shingles came on the market, the price was as low 
as $12.00, which was very poor pay for mined shingles. The 
present roof on Independence Hall, Philadelphia, is of dug up 
shingles secured in Cape May Co. Mr. John Anneley secured 
the contract for 25,000 shingles, and he and father prepared 
all these shingles and was paid an extra price for the same. 
Mrs. Sophia Taylor's house in Dennisville is now roofed with 
dug up shingles that have been on more than eighty years. 

Father sent many shingles to Cape May city. I remem- 



23 

ber at one time he engaged three teams, he going with them 
and walking all the way. It was the custom on trips of this 
character to start as soon as the load was on, continue all 
through the night, stopping only long enough to feed the 
horses, arriving at Cape May city sometime the following day. 
Some of the finest grained wood brought an extra price, being 
shipped in boxes to dealers in some of the western states to be 
used in the manufacture of violins. Violins made from this 
wood gave forth a better quality of music than those made 
from any other wood. 

Tools used in this business were cross-cut saw, progue. 
drawing knife, butters, maul, ax, drag, and froe. The froe 
was used in splitting the cuts and also in splitting the shingles 
after they had been bolted up. The froe is a piece of iron fif- 
teen inches long, three inches wide and one half inch thick on 
the back or top side tappering to an edge at the bottom having 
an eye in one end so as to let a handle stick up one foot. A 
maul about as heavy as a man can lift, is used to strike the froe 
to make it do the splitting. The but ends of a wind-fall, one 
that blew down and up at the roots, furnished the best wood 
but sometimes a break-ofif would furnish three or four good 
cuts. For a number of years after the Civil War in which he 
served, father was engaged in the milling of grain, but after 
the mill blew out he returned to shingle mining following it 
until he was 76 years of age. 

T have a dug up shingle which is much weathered, 32x8- 
1-2 inches by one-half inch thick (when new it was one inch 
thick) taken from the home of Linneus T. Swain, where it has 
been a side, not roof shingle, since 1785 or earlier, as this house 
has been known to have been in the family at least that long. 
Tn later years these shingles were made shorter and narrower. 

The front or westward side of the roof on the front of 
]\Ir. Coleman F. Leaming's brick house, late home of the Hon. 
Richard S. Learning, is of these dugrup or mined shingles, 
placed there by his grandfather, Joseph Falkenburge, about 
1803 and are giving good service yet (1913") Those on the 
eastern or back part were removed about 187.5. 



CHAPTER VI. 



HOT SUGAR. 
{Tunc — Yankee Doodle) 
Shut in my hotne by winter's storm 

Snow whirling wild without 
A curley-headed little boy 

Runs chattering about. 
He seizes now the pepper box, 

Then rushes for his cot, 
Back comes a yelling cry of rage, 

"Dis sudar bowl is hot." 

Chorus 

Keep your eyes on the little tot, 

Also on the bigger lot, 
For when the pepper box is not 

Sugar is most likely to be hot. 

Oft methought in the race of life 

The sugar-bowl is hot. 
For when I tried my first segar 

My supper it was not. 
And when the girl I loved so well 

Another fellow got, 
Or when my business went to wreck 

They sold my bed and cot. 

Then when I sailed old ocean blue 
And sang "New York" or what? 

Thinking to never see home again. 
The sugar bowl was hot. 

Like t'other end of a little stick 



25 

Mother or teacher shook, 
Or best end of a business deal 
The other fellow took. 

Once "long came a confidence man. 

Another with folding cot, 
When home burned down — a total loss — 

The sugar bowl was hot. 
At a show, a horse race too, 

I saw my last cent trot. 
Whenever I take the crooked road 

The sugar bowl gets hot. 

In order to make a living 

Or keep what you have got, 
Eye well the other fellow or 

He'll make your sugar hot. 
So now my boy, my little girl, 

Fill up your brain with meat, 
So when you're old and have to strive 

Your sugar will not heat. 

Don't waste your time by hanging round 

With a low. filthy lot. 
Should ever it come your time to crow 

You'll find }'our sugar hot. 
Don't fool around a drinking place 

'Twill cause your brain to rot, 
So gambling and those games of chance 

May make your sugar hot. 

Then seek the right, my little one. 
The good, the great, the true, 

If nobly you seek wisdom's ways 
Life will be sweet to vou. 



26 



You'll crow, and sing, and shout, and jump, 

And rest and love and eat. 
Because you've loved to help the weak 

Your sugar's cool and sweet. 



TOBACCO. 



Tobacco is an excellent pill 

For lice and insects pests to kill, 

Good to dull the brain and weaken the heart 

And make one any thing else than smart. 

Said to be a filthy weed 

And from the devil to proceed, 

Robbing the pockets, burning one's clothes 

Making a chimney of one's nose, 

Stinking its user from head to toes 

So whether to use tobacco 

Or whether to use it not, 

The only answer I care to give is 

YOU'D BETTER, BETTER NOT. 



CHAPTER VII 



• AT CAPE MAY POINT 

From near the eastern end of Lake Lily at Cape May 
Point is the remains of an old ditch rnnning to the north be- 
tween the farms of Alvin B. Marcy and John Reeves for more 
than three-quarters of a mile into Pond Creek. 

At one place where the timber has lately been converted 
into logs and cordwood, the ditch is now (1910) from two 
to 16 feet deep, going through sand banks as well as meadow 
land. 

Tradition says this ditch was dug to let sa4t water into 
Lake Lily to prevent the British from getting supplies of fresh 
water the'refrom. Note well the grit, determination, patience 
and perseverance of our patriot ancestors. Once when ashore 
here stealing cattle and getting water, one of the British asked 
a patriot what kind of buildings w^ere two houses nearby that 
had Dormer windows? Oh, replied the American, who like 
so many others in this country, ready at all times to outwit the 
British even when they could not whip them, "they are houses 
used for army quarters and those windows in the roof are 
port holes, and in a few minutes you'll be mown down with 
shot from the guns wdiich the soldiers there have nearly ready 
to fire.'' Such hustling of the casks of water and the hurry- 
ing of the cattle and sheep to the small boats and then to the 
ship was laughable to behold. 

Edward S. Wheeler records that once The Pontiers, a 
British line-of-battle ship in 1812 appeared ofif Cape May city 
and threatened to bombard the place if its inhabitants did not 
supply them with fresh water. The cheap ransom was paid 
at once and the ship sailed away. Probably this happened 
soon after they had been deprived of getting fresh water from 
Lake Lilv bv the letting in thereto of salt water. 



Cape May Point, a place of natural beauty ; the ocean 
meeting the bay, the rips, the setting sun, the cedars bending 
low from strong winds, their limbs trailing close to or upon 
the ground, the incoming and outgowing ships of all kinds 
and sizes, and that beautiful lake (Lake Lily) for boating, 
skating, rowing, ice-boating, with Amnon island for a landing 
place within its waters, the bridge across its eastern end with 
the mass of lilies and other flowers, contrasting with the ad- 
joining sand dunes some wooded and others not. Cottages in 
groves,, some not in groves, and down upon all each night 
shines the great Cape May light revolving, lighting the dark- 
ness, warning the sailor as well as acting as his guide, and 
beautifying Cape May Point and its surrounding waters. 



THE CAPE MAY LIGHTHOUSE. 

The English government built the Cape Henlopen light- 
house on the western or opposite shore of Delaware Bay in 
1744, and it is very probable that the first Cape May lighthouse 
was built by them on its eastern shore where the ocean meets 
the bay at about the same date. Old ocean has rolled for 
years where the first lighthouse stood. A second which was 
built in 1823 is now about 500 feet from high water mark and 
is used as a stable. 

The third and present one built in 1859, stands about 1000 
feet from high water mark. It is 100 feet in circumference at 
its base and 180 feet in height, and has within it a spiral stair- 
way of 199 steps plus eight additional ones above the light. 
This stairway divided into six flights has at the head of five of 
This stairway divided into six flights has at the head of each of 
five of them a resting place and a window. At the head of the 
sixth is an outside walkway 40 feet around, the revolving light 
which is alternately bright and dark for 30 seconds each, and 
the revolving clockwork machinery with its reflector of 550 
prisms and 16 lenses. The center of each lense is the center 
of greatest brilliancy while between each lense and its corres- 



29 

ponding prisms is the frame which holds them and furnishes 
the center for darkness. 

The old kerosene lamp which had five concentric wicks 
and consumed seven and one-half gallons of oil between sun- 
set and sunrise, was replaced about 1910 with a vapor light 
and as our dear Uncle Sam loves to keep everything of his up- 
to-date, new clock work machinery took the place of that 
which had been in constant use for over fiftv vears. 




Cape May Light House 

The latest information of authority comes to me from the 
ofiice of Inspector of Fourth District, Philadelphia, Pa., by 
letter of March 20, 1913. It says: 

A Description of Cape I\Iay Lighthouse Tower. 
The tower is constructed of brick laid in cement mortar. 
The walls at the base are about eight feet thick ; at the top 24 



30 



inches thick. The diameter of the Hghthouse at the base is 27 
feet; at the top 15 feet. From the base of the structure to the 
top of the lantern is 170 feet. 

This consists of a revolving lens manufactured by Henry 
Lepaute, Paris, France. The lens is of the first order and has 
an inside diameter of six feet. The whole lens revolves on 
ball-bearing chariots. Time of one revolution eight minutes. 
The light gives a flash every 30 seconds, which can be seen for 
19 miles. The lens is revolved by means of a weight actuated 
clock. The light is produced by incandescent oil vapor and 
has a candle power of 210,000. This Light Station is in 
charge of three keepers, one of whom is always on watch at 
nights. This light is used as a coast light. 




Caps May Point Where Qcean and Bay Meet 
1 Strand. 2 Ocean Coming In. 3 Bay Going Out. Ripps Between. 5 Sky 



CHAPTER VIII. 



WHAT TO TALK ABOUT. 

When a friend comes around 

For a chat or a visit, 
Talk of naught that is low, 

Speak of the grand the exquisite. 

Tell what makes the body healthy, 
Tell what makes the mind grow. 

Say what causes the soul's graces 
To quicken and overflow. 

Talk of what is pleasing, 

Speak of that which is grand, 

Of deeds that ennoble 

Throughout this great land. 

Read of heroic deeds. 

Of the many new delights. 

Read of the new inventions 

And the many pleasing sights. 

Speak of pleasant times. Study 

Industries that are new. 
Say what makes man better, 

Say what makes man true. 

Talk of noble manhood. 

Speak of their saintly wives, 

Speak of pleasant landscapes, 
And bright and sunny skies. 

You'll be growing grander. 
Then you'll be growing wise, 

Making yourself and others 
Happy this side the skies. 



CHAPTER IX. 



LOMBARDY POPLARS. 

Often called "Sky Poplars" because of their great height. 
On the homestead of the late John Gofif who for many }-ears 
was the village blacksmith of West Creek (Eldora), Cape May 
Co.. is probably the tallest sky poplar to be seen at this time 
(1913) in this county. 

Tradition says that they were planted as a protection from 
lightning. Being so much taller than the dwelling houses 
lightning would naturally take to them instead of to the house. 




Lombardy Poplars oft;n called "Sky Poplars" 



Histor}- says our patriot forefathers planted them in Colo- 
nial days to denote the growth of liberty in this country believ- 
ing that as these trees grew in height the spirit of libert}- grew 
more and greater in the hearts of the American people. Facts 
seem to prove that their belief was well founded. 

These trees bear no fruit and give so little shade that 
some have been surprised to see the remains of them in so 
many places, but each one marks the home plot of a plantation 



33 



wliere lived a patriot and not a tory. Think how many times 
these old plantations have been divided and redivided among 
heirs since the Revolution and the surprise is that the farms 
of today are as large as they are yet it serves to show the im- 
mense size of those old plantations. 

A pleasant sight of my boyhood days — the days of the 
Civil War — was to see "Old Glory" fly from the top of a pole 
that protruded 2S feet out of the top of one of these 50 feet 
high "sky poplars" on the farm of the late "Uncle Billy Dou- 
glass" then an old man, and he it was wiio induced the fright- 
ened inhabitants of the Delaware Bay shore to place Quaker 
guns (gum logs shaped and painted like cannon) along the 
Delaware Bay' shore from the Cedar Hammocks southward 
during the war of 1812, when the British ships sailed into the 
bay. 

CEDAR. 

Then there is a very old cedar tree with a strong eastern 
inclination on the eastern side of the bav shore road and near 




Cedar and Old Preaching Place 

to the first road south of Dcnnisville, as well as Goshen that 
branches oiif to drive to the shore of old Delaware Bay where 
adjoining this said road on its north lay father's farm where 



34 

we have helped gather hundred of tons of salt and sedge hay 
and many tons of gravel to ship to Philadelphia for roofing 
houses. Here close to the "Cedar Hammocks" we have been 
poisoned by its ivy and have caught thousands of king crabs as 
they came to lay their eggs in the warm strand of this shore 
and then helped to convert them into many tons of cancerine — 
the greatest fertilizer extant. 

But returning to our cedar we wish to say that it stands 
near an old house that was formerly the old preaching place 
below Goshen where many a strong sermon and good class as 
well as prayer meeting has been held. This old house is now 
owned by Mr. Elisha B. Scull, beneath and around this cedar 
gathered our forefathers and many generations since have 
played beneath this partially-bared-trunk cedar tree. 

THE TWO LINDENS. 

Two beautiful linden trees stand near Johnson Lake in 
Cape May County soil at Dennisville, N. J., in front of the 
home of Miss Rhoda Beesley. These trees were in 1811 a 
present to Miss Sarah L. Moore, who afterward became the 
wife of the late Dr. Maurice Beesley, who for a number of 




The Two Lindens 



35 

3ears was superintendent of the public sclwols of this county. 

An only brother, Learning Moore, son of Amos C. Moore 
and Hannah his wife, presented them to his sister when she 
was but five years old, and so choice were they that he paid 
$5.00 each to get them. 

Amos C. Moore was a major in the war of 1812, and as 
he did not die until 1857 and as these trees stand on the soil 
that was formerly his home they have already given their re- 
freshing shade to three, yea four generations of his family and 
bid fair to give shade for many years to come. The bark of 
the bass or linden tree is in some places used to make cordage 
and mats. 

THE TWO MULBERRIES. 

There are several white mulberry trees in this county. 
Called white because their fruit is white in color and to dis- 
tinguish them from the mulberrv that bears fruit of a darkish 




The Two Mulberries 



36 

red. ]\lost likely the largest and oldest are the two standing 
on the farm of Charles Tomlin at Dias Creek, N. J., a few rods 
south of the Baptist Church. They were set out to furnish 
food for the silk worm when the silk-raising industry was be- 
ing tried hereabouts. So many years ago that we fail to find 
out when these trees were set. They are from three to four 
feet in diameter with a circumference of ten and one-half and 
twelve feet, and doubtless are over one hundred years old. 

The industry proved to be not a financial success, for what 
reason I know not. Whether the climate, the want of know- 
ing how to manage the business or what I've been unable to 
learn, though word comes to me that any new or questionable 
scheme was thereafter spoken of as "Probably another Mulla 
Caulus," yet New Jersey today ranks as the first state in the 
production of silk, even if in early days it failed in Cape May. 
county. 

THE BIG POPLAR. 

On Brower Island near the head of the Beaver Dam 
swamp in the vicinity of the Tommy Townsend mill property 
(now owned by Mr. Frank Leaming) lay in 1876 a fallen pop- 
lar tree of such immense proportions that the Hon. Richard S. 
Leaming was asked to send a portion of it to the Centennial 
Exhibition. The task was one too big to be granted. This 
tree measured about nine feet in diameter and fift}' feet to its 
first limb. Fires have destroyed it. Only an outline of its 
immense stump can be seen. About 1865 a gang of thieves 
prowled about various parts of this county robbing cellars, 
henhouses, cribs, meat houses anrl such like. On one of these 
raids a dog was left and held as a decoy. Soon after on one 
bright moonlight night at Dias Creek, while a young man was 
courting the girl whom he afterward married, their attention 
was called to something going on outside. Unarmed he sal- 
lied out called to the two men outside and followed them until 
one reached for a weapon. So bright was the moon that this 
youuji^ man's evidence coupled with the fact that the strange 
dog had not been gotten out of the corn crib by these two 



37 



raiders but was on the same premises the next morning and 
which was claimed by a certain man a few days afterward 
that the leader and) several members of the gang were landed 
in jail out of which they broke. Recapture for a long time 
proved futile. They appeared to be in the county but just 
where no one seemed to be able to find out. It has been learn- 
ed since that the hollow of this tree served them as a home 
and a safe, unsuspected place of concealment. 

AN A^IERICAN ELM. 
About two miles north of the county jail of Cape May 
County, N. J., on the . farm lately purchased by William S. 




An Ame.ican Elm 



Thomas off Mr. Frank Leaming, stands what we believe to be 
a Boston or American elm, probably fifty feet high and four 
feet above the ground, has a circumference we judge of four- 
teen feet. At another place in New Jersey have we heard of 



38' 

* 
a similar tree, and we believe that they are scions from the 
Cambridge elm under whose wide spreading branches Wash- 
ington took command of the American army in 1775. 

Jeremiah Ludlam, the grandfather of Frank Learning, re- 
marked in his latter days that this tree seemed as large 75 
years ago as it did then. He died about I860, and this place 
was once his homested. Our patriot fathers loved to perpet- 
uate such memories as Washington at Cambridge, and who 
knows but what some sons of Cape May were in that gather- 
ing and that then or afterward they or some relative when 
visiting Boston procured a scion of said elm and planted it in 
the soil of old Middle Township, or was it carried by emi- 
grations first to Long Island and then here. 



CHAPTER X. 

IRA AND JOHN 

A group of noble looking American boys stood upon the 
banks of a stream and decided to swim across it. One whom 
we shall call Ira, with a physique and bearing more pro- 
nounced if possible than the rest, succeeded in reaching its 
opposite bank first. When finally all had come safely over 
they praised Ira for being the first to arrive across. Where- 
upon Ira exclaimed : "That's nothing, I could have done it with 
a stone tied to one of my feet." His companions doubted it 
and procured the stone and tied it on and secured a boat and 
rowed after him to furnish help if he needed any, but Ira 
crossed safely. Then they praised him more than ever. 

A week later about the same group of boys were by the 
same stream, and in speaking of Ira's former feat, he ex- 
claimed: "I could swim across with a stone tied to each foot!" 
And so he did. 

At another time he boasted that he could do so with a 
stone tied to a wrist as well as to each foot. This was kept 
up until he swam the stream with a weight fastened 
weight fastened to each ankle and wrist and a weight upon his 
back. He had swam the stream so often and so much weight- 
ed that upon this day the boys did not accompany him with a 
boat, and when about midstream where the tide was unusually 
strong and the waves were lashed by a strong wind, Ira sanlc 
beneath the waters. He had taken one risk— one weight too 
many. 

The summer was drawing rapidly to a close, when one 
day Ira, a picture of health, tried to swim the stream with a 
pound weight fastened to each ankle and wrist and a two 
pound weight upon his back. He had swam the stream so 
often and so much weighted that upon this day the boys did 
not accompany him with a boat, and when about midstream 



40 

where the tide was unusually strong and the waves were 
lashed by a strong wind, Ira sank beneath the waters He 

had taken one risk — one weight too many. 

This group of boys is characteristic of every man, woman 
and child passing through this life. Pure in childhood but 
many gradually tack on one vice after another vmtil they sink 
into hell fire. 

About the first thing a child begins to branch ofif from an 
upright life is disobedience to parents, wanting his own way. 
So onward down the crooked road, and instead of its being a 
stone tied to a limb, it is disobedience, lying, smoking, swear- 
ing tied to his character. Breaking the first commandment of 
God, then another and another until very few, if any, are kept. 
Acting the Ira. 

Having other gods or things first in his affections. 

Serving or seeking pleasures, riches, honor, fame, where 
they are not. 

Swearing, breaking the Sabbath, lying or bearing false 
witness and thinking he can carry these and other similar 
things through life and be a model, upright, prosperous citizen. 
I tell ye, nay, for in an unguarded moment too many go so far 
they cannot retrace and they tumble in a heap of disgrace or 
sink engulfed in sin. 

What a contrast to one, however humble his sphere in life 
may be, who tries to be true to parents and God? Aims to 
lead a clean life, strives to improve in body, mind and soul, 
each generation heeding the warnings and avoiding the mis- 
takes of its forefathers, improving given opportunities until 
upright living and intelligence produce a person or family of 
brains, power, integrity and manliness, a giant for his or their 
age and race, honored by God and man as was McKinley, 
Gladstone and Queen Victoria, and the family of Fields re- 
spected on earth and welcomed to heaven. The John's of the 
ages. 



CHAPTER XI. 



NOTED SIGHTS. 

At Rio Grande, a village about seven miles north of Cape 
May city, tkrough which passes two main and two branch 
railroads, the New State Boulevard, and from which runs a 
fine driveway to Holly Beach, may be seen the remains of th^ 
old sorghum sugar mill. Then about a half mile to the north- 
west on the farm of John Cresse, where an overhead irrigating 



'^^Si 




1 




T' 


^wml^m 


# 


^m 


'';yi*P< 


s 



ii ^ W-K|:? ■■ 



ii^^-Wl^-^.^ 



Grove of Nummy Burrying Ground 

plant has lately been installed, may be seen a grove, mostly of 
hickory, in which and in the adjoining fields lie buried in this 
old Nummy burying ground, hundreds .of Indians, Probably 
as many as 300 natural stones that likely had been brought 
from Pennsylvania marked these resting places fifty years ago 
but now very few remain. These stones have been appro- 
priated to various purposes. One man took quite a number to 
use as ballast for his boat. The chief Indian of these parts 
was Nummy. His grave is in this grove. A portion of this 
locality is to this day known as Nummytown, though some of 
it has of late acquired the name of Green Splinter. Henry 




LiJ 




43 

Davis formerly owned this farm. History speaks of one 
Nummy selling a whale to one Evan Davis who owned a plan- 
tation about 1685. Perhaps this present farm is a part of that 
plantation and that it had come down to Henry Davis from 
this ancestor Evan. History also says that Nummy was the 
last king or chief of the Lenni Lenapes, and that after he was 
buried on Nummy Island near Hereford Inlet these Indians 
left for Indiana and settled on the banks of the Wabash river 
and never returned to Cape May. This place is so surrounded 
by swamps, ponds and creeks that the Indians likely considered 
it an island, and if this message was carried back here from 
Indiana it is easy to see that to Indians living in Indiana it 
would be near Hereford. The writer does not believe that 
Nummy was buried on the Nummy island that is near Here- 
ford inlet close to the Atlantic ocean. Do not think the Indi- 
ans would bury in a mud island. I am later informed that 
Nummy island was once covered with large hard yellow pine 
and this island was the Indians summer home, but Nummy- 
town their winter quarters. Papers found of late prove that 
Nummy island by Hereford Inlet was left by Parsons Leam- 
ing to his daughter Mary, later Mrs. Robert M. Holmes. 

On the eastern side of this village at the home of Ephraim 
Hildreth III, may be seen a large boiler about four feet across 
and eighteen inches deep in which our forefathers in 1812 
boiled salt water producing salt for home uses. Later when 
quantities of sugar cane was raised hereabouts said boiler was 
used for boiling its juice to produce molasses. This was years 
before the sorghum plantation and factory was thought of. 
Near by on the farm of County Clerk A. Carlton Hildreth, is 
another boiler of the same kind having been used for the same 
purposes. Here, too, may be seen some parts of the old cane 
crushing mill and on an elevation in the meadow near the 
sound is A. Carlton Hildreth's club house, which is built on the 
spot where salt was manufactured and is known as Salt Works 
hill. 

Then on the farm lately purchased by Jos. P. McKissic and 




Embankment — Girls on Bank and Boys at its sides 



45 

known as the "Richardson" farm and lying between these two 
Hildreth's farms down near the meadows in its farthest east- 
ern field, is the remains of an old embankment — some say 
thrown up during the Revolutionary war — others say during 
the war of 1812, used as a means of defense against the Brit- 
ish. One end of said bank has been plowed and leveled but 
the north end is now (1913) about four feet wide and from 
two to three feet high. The bank runs in the direction of the 
remains of an old fort's foundation on the land of Ephraim 
Hildreth. Likely used as a protection against pirates, priva- 
teers and British. Not far from here is Snake creek rising to 
the south and making near the mainland a short abrupt turn 
eastward to the ocean. This is the creek the British are said 
to have come up in their small boats on their raids and here if 
anywhere occurred a skirmish where the Americans resisted 
attempts to steal their cattle. For many years and until only a 
few years ago stood a flourishing ilour and grain mill at this 
Snake creek bend. Since the above was prepared the fo'llow- 
ing article, written by Samuel Springer, who died in 1877 and 
was a drummer boy in the war of 1812, also sheriff of Cape 
May County about 1840, was handed to me July 9, 1913. 

NUMMIE TOWN AND NUMMIE'S ISLAND. 

About seven miles above Cape Island is a place called 
Ntnnmie Town, situated on the head of Fishing creek midway 
between Delaware bay and the Atlantic ocean. It takes its 
name from once being the residence of an Indian chief named 
Nummie. At this place he had his principal headquarters. 
King Nummie appears to have understood that the seashore 
and sea bathing were conducive to health as well as pleasure, 
and there is no doubt but that he often visited Cape Island to 
enjoy these luxuries. But his principal place of resort ap- 
pears to have been an island on the seashore opposite Here- 
ford Inlet. This island named in honor of this Indian chief, 
was once, no doubt, quite a large place. Those who remember 
it about the time of the Revolution sav there were manv acres 




Remains of Old Cane Mill 




Club House on Salt'Works Hill 



47 

covered with a heavy growth of red cedar and what is gener- 
ally called the Indian pine. At that time and indeed long 
since, it had a fine beach and as it was open to the sea it must 
have been a delightful summer retreat. King Nummie lived 
at the time of the settlement of lower Jersey by the Europeans 
and made this island his principal resort for enjoying the lux- 
uries of the seashore and that he fared sumptously was plain 
to be seen from the large piles of oyster and clam shells left 
upon the island. 

It was also famous for birds, terripins, etc., and in May 
and June the whole island was almost litterally covered with 
birds eggs. There are those now living who have collected 
a barrel full in a single day. In 1820 a man could collect half 
a bushel of terripin eggs, and if a laying day, could pick up as 
many terripins as he could carry. So you see King Nummie 
must have enjoyed all the luxuries of life, by only reaching out 
his hand and gathering what came to his tent door. King 
Nummie was no doubt a friendly Indian, as we have no ac- 
count of any of those barbarous acts being committed by him 
which were so common among the Indian at the time of the 
settlement of the country by the whites. In the year 1692 
there were Indians in this county as appears from the records 
of the first courts. In the second suit on record George Tay- 
lor accuseth John Jarvis for helping the Indians to rum. Said 
Jarvis refusing to clear himself was convicted. 

But 165 years have made sad havoc w^ith King Nummie's 
Island. The high land like all the beaches on the sea coast, 
was composed of fine sand and Hereford Inlet having broken 
out directly in front of it laid it open to the surges of the At- 
lantic, and it has yielded to its constant washing until there is 
nothing left of that once beautiful island save a few scrub 
bushes and that part of it composed of meadow which is fam- 
ous for birds eggs to this day. I have collected all the timber 
in the neighborhood which came from Nummie's Island which 
I intend working into canes and presenting to the fair to be 
held at the island to aid the Baptist Church in that place in 





UJ 



O 



U 



49 



paying the debt against the church. The punshan (pun- 
cheon) of one of those canes will be a relict of by-gone days 
part of a tree under which King Nummie sat in all his native 
freedom, surrounded with his tribe and enjoying all the luxu- 
ries of the seashore which are so highly prized by us of the 
present day. 

Nummy Town was settled by the whites, but like all other 
inland places, it has never made much progress, the inhabitants 
preferring either the bay or the seashore. There is a tradition 
that Whitefield preached under a big tree at Nummie Town 
during his sojourn in New Jersey. 




A bank of Cape May Point Ditch. Hat at buttom, stump at top 



CHAPTER XII 



THE FREEZE TO DEATH YEAR. 

The sumer of 1816 is known as the cold summer. There 
was frost in Cape May County, N. J. every month of the year 
and so it was through all the settled portions of the United 
States.. The winter of 1815-16 was an open winter, snow fell 
in November but scarcely any in December and January. 
Christmas and New Years were warm, open and green. Jan- 
uary was a very mild month, the sun shone every day, people 
prepared for great storms and cold weather in February, but 
it was even warmer than January. Near the end of February 
and the first days of March a terrible storm raged and gave 
way to cold and boisterous winds. April was like January 
ending with snow and ice. In May ice formed an inch thick 
on rivers and streams, buds and flowers were frozen and the 
entire corn crop was killed. Frost, ice and snow were com- 
mon in June and all attempts to raise vegetable products 
failed. Farmers hoarded their crops of the preceding year. 
Almost every crop was killed and the fruit was nearly all 
destroyed. July 4th was cold and a blustering wind, raw and 
uncomfortable, swept the entire Atlantic coast. On the fifth, 
ice was formed, the thickness of window glass, in New York 
city and all through New England and in Pennsylvania. It 
was so cold the Cape May farmers tended their corn the best 
of which was only about three feet, wearing mittens and coats. 
In August ice half an inch thick was frequently seen. Sep- 
tember and October presented nearer approach to summer 
weather than any other month of the year. In November ex- 
treme cold weather began and a severe winter continued up to 
April, then summer began and the farmers realized bounteous 
crops. 

While not so severe the same conditions existed in Eng- 
land as in this country, so little corn was raised in this county 



52 

that it was necessary to send to the South to get seed corn for 
the spring planting of 1817. Seed corn from the crop of 1815 
brought $4.00 or $5.00 a bushel. 

In one ancestral branch of the writer's family food was 
so scarce that after meals so hungry were the children that 
they vied with each other to scrape the mushpot for a few 
specks more to eat. The report comes down that if this family 
had not owned some valuable cedar swamp that could be con- 
verted into cash they would probably have starved to death. 

The Star and Wave of May 25, 1912, says : 

The year 1816 was known as the "Freeze to Death" year, 
there being frost every month, and many tales of it have been 
handed down the generations and are occasionally heard even 
at this day, 96 years after. 

Frank Leaming of Court House, has recently made 
among some old papers, the discovery of an almanac of that 
year entitled "Kites Town and Country Almanac, 1816," cal- 
culated by William Colborn and printed by Lydia B. Bailey, of 
Philadelphia. He found it among papers left by the late Dr. 
Coleman F. Leaming, and supposes it to have been originally 
Owned by Dr. Coleman's father, Jeremiah Leaming to whom 
he credits the many interesting notations running through its 
pages, among which are the following: At the bottom of the 
page for May is the statement "Llncommonly Cold," Oppo- 
site May 16, "Frost." From June 7th to 12th "Frost," July 
3rd and 4th "Frost," July 29th; "Frost," August 12th, 21st, 
29th and 31st, "Frost;" September 3rd, 7th, "Frost," 13th, 14th 
15th, 16th, 17th and 20th, "Storm;" September 27th, "Frost;" 
September 28th, "Storm;" December 4th, "Snow Storm." 
Another notation states that such a cold year had never before 
been known by any of the oldest inhabitants. As a result, 
crops failed and there was a scarcity and high prices which 
made times very hard. The price of corn rose to $1.75 and 
$2.00 per bushel and flour to $15 per barrel. No attempt was 
made to accuse either the Federalist or Democratic party of 
that day of being responsible for the "high cost of living." 



CHAPTER XIII. 



INDIAN TRAILS. 

The Indian had paths called trails over most of this coun- 
try. They were around the heads of rivers, or led to fording 
places where there were shoals, or where the streams were 
narrow. Sometimes a tree or trees could be fallen so as to aid 
in crossing. At other places the squaws would carry gravel 
and build a hard way across the river's bed that at low tide 
would fall quite or nearly bare and when the tide was not too 
high could be waded. 

These artificial fording places greatly shortened distances 
as they were usually nearer the mouths of rivers and favored 
a more direct route while other crossing places led in very 
circuitous routes. 

The white settlers followed these trails. This is why so 
many old roads are very crooked and also why so many old 
fields are found near the interior of our county. The whites 
followed these trails until they came to a stream which stream 
they would examine for a mill site in conjunction with a good 
stand of fine cedar and other timber. A great business of our 
forefathers was shipping lumber to Philadelphia, New York, 
West India and other ports. These fording places were soon 
bridged. The trails' became roads. Some of them are our 
roads today. For instance, the road leading from Goshen 
landing past Swain Station, was an old Indian trail across the 
county. This is why it is so crooked. It trailed between the 
swamps or. across the narrowest or shoalest places in them. 
The big bend near Mr. George Gallaher's was built at the nar- 
rowest part of what was and even yet is known as Pole Cross 
Road swamp. 

As the whites were able and as business developed bridges 
were built nearer the mouths of streams. Roads were short- 



54 

ened and straightened. The old crooked roads or remains of 
them around the heads of or between streams were deserted. 

At times of migration, war, or battle with the whites, the 
Indians would often appear or disappear in one direction and 
reappear in the opposite direction by going and coming over 
some of these artificial fording places that were secreted from 
the uninitiated. 




CHAPTER XIV. 



TORNADOES. 

On the morning of August 17, 1876, there appeared in the 
atmosphere just south of the mouth of Dyers Creek, a cloud 
having the appearance of smoke. When first seen it was to 
the naked eye about the size of a quart cup. It kept increas- 
ing in size and as it swept in from the bay and over the mead- 
ows, a powerful wind from the northwest came with it roaring 
like several express trains at full speed. From the cloud 
would run branches, waving and slatting fearfully back and 
forth in the air, and as it moved in the southeasterly direction 
it crossed the salt marsh, filling the air with the new mown 
hay, carrying it nearly all away. Cows feeding in the pasture 
were blown to the ground. 

The tornado moved on crossing the main road destroying 
the house, barn and outbuildings of the old Pierce's Point farm 
owned and occupied by Mr. Edward I. Sayre, who with a child 
in his arms sat talking to his neighbor Wm. S. Leaming. The 
latter had his head cut and back hurt while getting out. Mr. 
Sayre with the child (afterward Mrs. Lida Scheutze) rushed 
out and sat down close to the but of an immense tree about two 
and one-half feet in diameter, and escaped unhurt. They saw 
the approaching tempest but did not comprehend their danger 
nor imagine its severity until it was upon them. 

Mrs. Sayre finding the wind coming in at a door, at- 
tempted to shut it and at that moment the destructive wind 
struck the house and she was boxed in between two doors with 
bricks and fallen timber tumbling all around her. 
The top of the house ofif — most of it down — here she was fast 
but safe for the flooring to the room over her head had sus- 
tained the weight of the bricks above and after the storm she 
was taken out unhurt from a providentially made cell three feet 
square by seven feet high. 



56 

A young man (Mr. Elisha B. Scull) living with Mr. 
Say re had just gone into the parlor to try on a new pair of 
pants, escaped unhurt with his pants but the pants had a big 
hole through the seat as if a brick had just missed his head 
and punctured the pants. Three horses that were buried be- 
neath the barn and its contents, were not fatally injured. The 
buildings were not traps but had been rebuilt the previous 
spring. The house had two immense chimneys — the old-fash- 
ioned fireplace kind which were wrenched into chunks two to 
three feet in length. 

We believe the wind would have destroyed almost any 
building in this state. Crops were destroyed, corn was strip- 
ped of its blades and husks or twisted off close to the ground. 
Lima beans were shelled; fences blown fiat; trees 12 to 18 in- 
ches in diameter were uprooted or broken off from two to ten 
feet above the ground, and some of them stripped of their 
limbs, others were carried a quarter of a mile in the air without 
touching the ground ; tossing them about as if they had 
been feathers. Where some struck the ground great holes 
were dug. 

The belt of the tornado was about 200 yards wide and its 
track for over a mile was marked with pieces of timber, broken 
boards, shingles, articles of furniture in fragments; clothes 
hung in trees ; barrels, boxes and baskets scattered at random. 

The trees in Mr. Wm. S. Leaming's house yard were 
stripped of many limbs, but the force of the tornado missed by 
only a few feet his buildings. The wreck and ruin were com- 
plete and far beyond the imagination to conceive. Lasting only 
a few minutes it was over before the community was aware 
that a calamity had visited them. The day was characterized by 
thunder showers and some very hard claps of thunder and 
sharp lightning. The summer had been quite dry and rather 
warmer than summers here usually are. 

PETERSBURG TORNADO. 
At Petersburg N. J., July 4, 1881, about 3 P. M., there 
was a tornado nearlv one-fourth of a mile wide of sufficient 



57 

force to unroof buildings, blow clown three barns, shift build- 
ings from their foundations and blow one store building to 
pieces. 

One tin roof was blown off and rolled up in a bundle. 
Peter Van Gilder had a horse buried beneath his barn and its 
contents, when it blew down though it was gotten out without 
injury. 

The storm centered near Mr. James Smith's, passing in a 
southeasterly direction after demolishing and completely de- 
stroying his old apple orchard that contained trees of good 
size. It spent its force shortly after passing cedar creek. This 
tornado probably covered a distance of about two miles, being 
accompanied by rain, hail, thunder and lightning. 

UPPER TOWNSHIP TORNADO 

At about daybreak October 4, 1849, the occupants of the 
dwelling standing north of the present Seaside Cemetery and 
off on the east side of our present boulevard, heard an immense 
roar of wind passing over the top of their home but so high up 
as to do them no damage. It came from the southeast and 
swept down into the hollow near the Lee barn (now owned by 
Thomas French) twisting one corner of it then crushing one 
house owned by Samuel Godfrey to the ground and breaking 
it into fragments without injuring anyone seriously, then as it 
rose up the hill it carried away the upper half story of Jonas 
Corson's home, together with his first wife Rachel and her sis- 
ter who were sleeping in a large room, carrying them eight 
rods or more. When the wife fell she came down through the 
limbs of an oak and lodged in it and died soon afterward. 
The sister, Emma Young, was tossed to one side of the track 
of the storm and badly hurt, but she finally recovered. The 
storm here took a northeasterly course. A part of one roof 
was found in what is now Ocean City. 

Mr. Washington Blackman now years old, remembers 
it well. His father owned the house in which Jonas Corson 
lived, and had a cornfield in the track of the tornado, the stalks 



58 

of which were twisted and crushed to the earth as well as suck- 
ed in from the sides. The width of this tornado was only 
about 25 feet, but it demolished everything in its wake, uproot- 
ing trees or breaking them off, destroying crops and hustling 
dogs, cats, poultry, hay, grass, weeds, bushes and fences in a 
wav unknown to them or their owners before or since. 



mMS^^ 



CHAPTER XV. 
THE OLD KING'S HIGHWAY. 

At Collingswood the King's highway passed in front of 
the old Cuthbert mansion which was erected in 1774, w^hich 
mansion was used as a hospital for colonial troops that passed 
between Philadelphia and Trenton. It probably passed 
through the Indian fields near Bridgeton; likely crossed the 
Maurice River a little to the south of Millville, then through 
Cumberland on across the head of Manumuskin creek, passing 
Bennet's mill, Feaster field, on to Tarklin, near where is now 
located Durell's cranberry bog ; also through Beebe field, San- 
born lot, Souder farm, Indian ordinary (usually pronounced 
"Ornery" because a bad Indian once lived there), Steelman- 
town, Mt. Pleasant. Hence on south over Long bridge, being 
the present road that passes the residence of Jehu Bonham 
(just deceased), the Blenton and Cedar Grove school houses 
a quarter of a mile east of the present Asbury Methodist Epis- 
copal Church, a little west of the almshouse, and 
on through Cape May Court Plouse, then bearing to the east 
going near the meadows in what is now the eastern part of 
Whitesboro and what was formerly the farm of Amos Cresse 
near where lie buried since 1807 and 1811 his parents, Philip 
and Hannah Cresse. It passed in front of the old mill house 
about half a mile east of Rio Grande on its way south, and I've 
often wondered if the road leading south over Schellinger's 
Landing into Cape May City was not its termination. Travel 
by land from the southern precincts of this county to the Up- 
per was very difficult because of the immense tract of deep 
swamp extending entirely across the county. Benj. Weath- 
erby of Tuckahoe was told by his mother that so delighted 
were the inhabitants at the building of this highway that the 
women voluntarily carried dirt in dishpans to hasten its con- 
struction. 



60 

Along this old highway can still be seen traces of former 
homes, black spots of earth, shells, old mortar and bricks. An 
old cannon ball badly rusted was found in 1913 at Erma near 
this old route. Before reaching Cape May City it likely 
passed through what was for many years the fresh banked 
meadows for which our forefathers seemed to be skilled and 
famous for making. In many places in this county are traces 
of old banks for converting salt marsh and swamp in fine fresh 
meadow. Some banks were built to keep the salt water out 
of the swamps of cedar 




CHAPTER XVf. 

JESUS 
CHRIST 

Is the 

Only Key 

That 
Al- 
ways 
Has 
Can 
Now 
And 
Al- 
ways 
Will 
Un- 
Lock 
The 
PROB- 
LEM 
OF 
LIFE 
Any- 
where 
At 
Any- 
Time 

To Any One 
Who Carefully 
Tests 
Him 
By 

The Principles 
Found In The 
Holy 
Script- 
ures, 



CHAPTER XVII. 

PLANTS FOR FOOD AND MEDICINE. 

Many were the dishes of greens that graced the tables of 
the early settlers of New Jersey. 

Today we eat asparagus, spinach, beet tops, turnip tops, cel- 
ery, and dandelion leaves as cultivated plants. The house- 
wives of former days gathered from the wilds two to six in- 
ches of the tops of poke when it was about a foot high, scalded 
it pouring off this green poisonous water, boiled and seasoned 
the poke and had a feast. Others used the leaves and tops of 
Lamb's quarter, crispus or krinkley dock (sour dock) leaves 
or a combination of all three, boiling together with a pinch of 
saleratus for fifteen minutes, then pouring off this first water 
to get rid of the poison, added a good piece of pork in the sec- 
ond water and furnished a dish fit for a lord. 

Doctors know that a few messes of greens in the spring 
surpass any medicine they can prescribe. Skavish (snake 
weed) was fine for poultices and would bring a boil to its des- 
tination in double quick time. 

The root or leaves of the butterfly plant grated and cooked 
in milk was excellent for scours in calves or for dysentary. 
Boneset tea (of the leaves) cured "chill and fever." Catnip 
and hoarhound tea taken hot at bedtime cured colds. Tea- 
berry leaves, spicewood, sassafras root bark, etc., were used 
in making beer. 

Tea of leaves of the gypsum (smart weed) mixed with 
lard make an excellent salve for the cure of poison from ivy 
or mangineal (swamp shumac). 

Our grandmother's gardens abounded in beds of thyme, 
sage, fennel, lavender, and they were experts in gathering 
plants for both food and medicine, catnip, hoarhound, boneset, 
were dried in quantities for winter use. 

The pink flower of the wickie plant easily revealed the 



63 

location of the plant that produced a red dye. Then there 
was the morning star plant with its white top the root of which 
was made into tea for consumptives, but if a cow had eaten 
during the day the kill calf plant that usually blooms in July 
and came up at night frothing at the mouth and acting in a 
languid manner, she must be given some pork pickle soon or 
she would die. 

Some grandmothers were excellent nurses, almost doctors, 
and many times both day and night were they called upon and 
left home, sometimes for days and weeks at a time, the big 
girl at home taking her mother's place and learned to run a 
home, managing not only the cooking, but the poultry, the 
carding, spinning, weaving, the milk, the butter, and the mak- 
ing of the cheese. 

Apples, pears, peaches, plums and berries were dried and 
preserved, furnishing superior and much healthier dishes than 
do the canned goods of today. Then, too, I would not forget 
the delicacies when roasted that hung in my grandmother's 
garret. I almost taste them yet. Japan peas, pop and sugar 
corn, groundnuts with not far away bushels of walnuts. 

In existence today is my grandmother's doctor book— 
"The Family Adviser by Henry Wilkins, M. D., 1793." Its 
fourth edition came in 1804, to which was added John Wes- 
ley's Primitive Physic. First printed in London in 1747, but 
the 26th corrected (my grandmother's) edition was printed 
by John C. Totten, N. Y., for the M. E. Church and sold by 
Ezekiel Cooper and John Wilson at the Book Room. 

In order to show the extent to which our ancestors used 
plants and their parts, we give a few of the items from said 
book : For consumption : Boil two handfuls of sorrel in a pint 
of whey. Strain it and drink a glass twice a day. 

For corns: Apply bruised ivy leaves daily and in 15 days 
they will drop out. 

For dropsy: Apply green dock leaves to the joints and 
soles of the feet, changing them once a day. 

For ring-worms : Apply rotten apples or pounded garlic. 



64 

For shingles : Drink sea water for a week, toward its close 
bathe in it or apply pounded garlic. 

For a sore mouth: Gargle with the juice of cinquefoil. 
For a stitch in the side : Apply treacle spread on a hot toast. 

For a venomous sting: x^pply the juice of honeysuckle 
leaves. 

For the sting of a wasp: Rub the part with the bruised 
leaves of house-leek, water cresses or rue ; or apply treacle or 
sweet oil ; or bruised onions or garlic. 

For sunburn : Wash with sage tea. 

For swelled tonsils : Wash them with lavender water. 

For warts : Rub them daily with a radish. 

For gravel : Eat largely of spinage. 

To make the hair grow : Wash every night with a strong 
decoction of rosemary. Dry it with flannel. 

For wounded tendons : Boil comfrey roots to a jellv and 
apply as a poultice, changing it once a dav. 

To open a wound that has closed too soon : Apply bruised 
centaury. 

Stone in the kidneys : Boil an ounce of common thistle 
root and four drachms of licorice in a pint of water. Drink 
half of it every morning. 

Much information in the use of plants they obtained from ' 
friendly Indians. 

Plots of spearmint, peppermint, dock, plantain, ivy, hon- 
eysuckle, and a dozen other plants were kept from year to year 
and the location of trees and bushes as ash, spice wood, alder, 
to be quickly obtained in cases of emergency, or in their dve- 
ing and cleansing was carefully noted. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 
MISSIONARY TO THE LENAPE INDIANS. 

These Indians were in general peaceful and New Jersey 
suffered but little from Indian wars and it is likely that the 
David spoken of in the following was the agent who saved 
hundreds of Jersey lives and much property. Indeed we may 
be living here today because of his influence. 

Count Zinzendorf adopted and educated a Moravian peas- 
ant lad whom he brought to America to visit his colony at 
Bethlahem, Pa. He became one of the hardiest and most de- 
voted of the early missionaries. His long wanderings through 
the wilderness with the Lenape Indians made him their friend 
and a passionate pity for them filled his heart. His longing 
to lift them up and make Christians of them was, he believed, 
a call from God. Count Zinzendorf and his suite, after a 
lengthy sojourn here, decided to start for home. They were 
all on their ship in the harbor of New York. It had weighed 
anchor and was moving down the bay when the Count found 
David alone on the deck, watching the receding land with tears 
in -his eyes. "Is it possible that you do not wish to go back to 
Europe?" he asked, for a pleasant and prosperous future 
awaited the boy there. "No ; God bids me go into that wil- 
derness and work for him," cried David. "Go back, then, in 
God's name!" said Zinzendorf. The ship was brought to and 
David went back. For sixty-two years he lived with the sav- 
ages, preaching the gospel to them and never receiving a dol- 
lar of salary from any church. David's sacrifice was like that 
of Joseph, in that it took him far from his home and friends. 
It is like that of all of us in that it entailed hardships and self- 
denial in the work of God. 



CHAPTER XIX. 

WHAT KIND OF A MODEL WILL YOU BE? 

Tune : — When the Roll is Called up Yonder. 

You are living as a model for the growing girl and boy, 
Will you make that life a failure or a joy? 
For you will point it up to heaven or down to pain and hell 
By the spirit that you let within j^ou dwell. 

Chorus : — Oh, keep growing ! Always growing ! 
i.--. So keep growing always growing 

Oh, keep growing, growing better all the while. 

Will you not help hold up to others the good, the pure, the true 

So evil may never in their pure souls brew? 

For boys smoke and swear and drink and lie because their 

elders do. 
Then let's throw a noble model to their view'. 

Chorus : — Then keep growing, always growing, 
Then keep growing, always growing. 
Then keep growing better all the while. 

There are some broken-hearted parents who brought their 

child up right. 
Have seen their dear one switched from the way of light. 
And many a struggling weak one has gone the upward track 
When they saw a friend in whom was little lack. 

Chorus : — So keep growing always growing 
So keep growing always growing 
So keep growing better all the while. 



- 67 

You are serving God or satan and are carrying on the work 
Of the one whose spirit you let within you lurk. 
Making the next generation one of weakness or of strength, 
As you guide those who will view your worth and length. 

Chorus : — So keep growing always growing 
So keep growing always growing 
So keep growing better all the while. 

To all that is low or mean dt vile, dear child, just shut your 

eyes. 
And elder, show the way to what is good and wise, 
Let each one help the other to win our loving Saviour's smile ! 
Noble then will be the race marching from guile. 

Chorus : — So keep growing always growing 
So keep growing always growing 
So keep growing better all the while. 




CHAPTER XX. 

THE GREAT SEPTEMBER GALE-1821. 

This chapter has for its basis the contributions to the Cape 
May County Gazette in 1910. 

It is fortunate that these typhoons or hurricanes (for this 
was truly one) rarely reach Ca^ May. In the West Indies 
they are generally preceded by a long spell of calm and hot 
weather. The years 1818-19-20-21 were noted for calms and 
long continued drought. During the summer a man noted for 
his reticence but when he did speak it was mostly to the 
purpose observed, "This summer is very hot, sultry, dry and 
calm ; I think the devil is mending his bellows and will give us 
a blast before winter." It was prophetic to the letter. The 
first notice we have of the commencement of this tornado was 
encountered a little north of St. Thomas, but no doubt orig- 
inated in the calm latitudes near the equator, caused by the rar- 
ification of the atmosphere by extreme calmness and heat. 
The surrounding cold rushes in from all points to fill the 
vacuum which produces the rotary motion in comparison to 
the whirlwind only on a small scale. This tornado traveled 
north at the rate of forty miles an hour. We may think this 
an awful ariel phenomenon, but history informs us that it was 
a small affair in comparison to some others, particularly the 
one that occurred sixty years before this one. 

We read of its striking Norfolk as an immense gale ac- 
companied by flood, rain, rise of tide, and darkness of the 
heavens. One vessel was found bottom upwards. A hole 
was cut, a colored woman taken out of the run. The vessel 
had turned bottom up immediately; all the rest (nine in num- 
ber) had perished. 

Baltimore experienced a great fall of rain with little wind 
while Philadelphia and New York felt the most tremendous 
gale that ever visited these parts. The list of damages at New 



69 

York filled nearly two columns of a newspaper. Wharves in 
New York were overflown to the depth of from 12 to 20 in- 
ches. Vessels were blown ashore and against each other with 
great force and badly "stove in" in stems, sides and sterns. 
Chimneys were blown down and houses unroofed and demol- 
ished, while the steeple of a church seerned to rock three feet 
each way. 

At Philadelphia there was havoc among the chimneys and 
trees. Ten of the fourteen beautiful Lombardy poplars at the 
Navy Yard were entirely blown up by the roots, and the U. S. 
vessels driven from their moorings were ship John Adams and 
frigates Delaware, Guerriere and Congress. One chimney 
blew over against an adjoining store and when the wind shifted 
blew back again and stood erect as usual. The water fell in 
the afternoon to the estimated depth of three and ninety-two 
one-hundreds inches. 

In Cape May County and other places, fields of grain and 
fruit trees suffered greatly. The force of the wind, says a let- 
ter from Egg Harbor, was so great that the spray of the salt 
water was carried 12 to 14 miles inland, killing vegetation, 
leaves of trees and herbs. Leaves of orchard trees on the 
side toward the ocean were turned brown and appeared as if 
scorched and dead, while on the other side the leaves were 
green and beautiful. 

It has been handed down by tradition in the Townsend 
family, one noted for truthfulness, that this gale lasted several 
days. The tides on the marshes were said to have been 12 
feet deep. One vessel ashore on the beach was taken over the 
top of the same and landed in a field between the marsh and the 
road. 

One account reads : "The ocean swept over the beaches 
along the eastern coast of Cape May County, rushed across 
the sounds and meadows carrying boats, some with people in 
them, far up on the mainland." 

We think it likely that the seaside suffered about the 3d 
instant, and the bay side about the 6th, for Mary Blacksom 



70 

who became the wife of Barlow WilHams, often told her son 
Charles (now living in Heislerville) that she was born Sep- 
tember 6th, 1821, the night of the September gale, when the 
water of Delaware Bay swept in over the meadows and upland 
with great force and velocity. 

Charles Ludlam, born in South Dennis in 1799 and died 
there about 1884, wrote: "The morning of September 3d, 1821, 
commenced with a light wind from the west, there was nothing 
in the looks of the atmosphere that indicated bad weather. At 
about 9 o'clock the wind hauled round to the southeast, stead- 
ily increasing. At 11 o'clock it might be called a gale, at 12 it 
was blowing a hurricane with intermittent gusts that drove in 
doors and windows, blowing down outbuildings, trees, fences 
and overflowing the marshes between the beach and mainland 
several feet. At this time it was difficult to stand without 
some support ; no clouds were to be seen, but in their place was 
a universal haze like a thick fog. The salt spray of the sea 
was driven inland some miles so as to kill vegetation. At 
about 10 o'clock it fell perfectly calm for about fifteen minutes, 
then the wind suddenly burst out from the northwest the di- 
rectly opposite quarter, and blew with increasing violence for 
about three hours, then gradually subsided, and by six o'clock 
had nearly ceased and cleared off at sundown. The evening 
was as clear as the morning, but oh dire was the devastation 
it left in its progress. Vessels foundered, driven ashore, or 
dismasted, woodland nearly ruined by being broken down or 
blown up by the roots, the writer of this had a favorite weep- 
ing willow that made three-quarter of a cord of wood that was 
blown down .by the southeast wind and when it came out, 
northwest blew^ it over to the opposite. Cape Island lost from 
16 to 20 feet of its bank, and what is most singular, a ship 
anchored that evening immediately opposite the present break- 
water that carried top gallant sails all day and knew nothing 
of the hurricane. The vortex or center of this cyclone as laid 
down in Blunt's Coast Pilot, struck our continent at or near 
the point of the Cape and passed over the center of the county 



71 

and could not have exceeded 50 miles in width as it was but 
partially felt in Bridgeton and Salem. It was a providential 
circumstance that it was low water and a low run of tides, 
otherwise it would have been calamitous in the extreme in the 
loss of life and property. 

On our bay shore the tide was higher than on the seaside 
of the Cape by several feet ; persons who witnessed the over- 
flow said it came like a perpendicular wall some five feet high 
driven by the wind when it changed to the northwest and came 
in an overwhelming surgle. From the formation of the land 
in the cove of our bay, in the vicinity of Goshen and Dias 
Creek and Cedar Hammocks, the water was concentrated as a 
common center and the tide was higher there than anywhere 
along the shore ; drift was lodged in the tree tops at the Cedar 
Hammocks nine feet high ; in all probability the heave of the 
sea had something to do in this. What at the time was consid- 
ered a large coaster was lying at Goshen Landing, broke from 
her fastenings and brought up in the edge of the swamp near 
Wm. Garrison Sr.'s. Another vesel at anchor at the mouth 
of Goshen Creek was dragged with all her ground tackling 
two miles across meadow and upland and brought up in the 
middle of the field now owned by Jesse Coombs, (in 1813 by 
Jesse Winfield Coombs). 

In the pasture of Mr. Hugh Hand (owned in 1813 by 
Geo. Reed and Mrs. Thos. H. Douglass) is a depression or 
basin of peat soil at the time six feet deep overgrown with 
alder, maple and other swamp growth, when the overwhelm- 
ing surge struck and overtopped the hill that intervened be- 
tween the marsh and the swamp, it tore up the peat soil to the 
hard pan and rolled it up to the southeast side of the basin 
like a sheep skin and left a clean pond where before was a peat 
swamp. 

Another says, The September Gale having wrought sad 
havoc on the Atlantic coast, on September 6th, it jumped out 
of the northwest and with the tide one-third ebb in Delaware 
Bay was strong enough to drive it up again, and as old peo- 



72 

pie used to say, to two high waters within six hours and a 
great overflow beside. The top of some of the meadow on 
the north side of Dyers Creek was skinned off and piled up in 
a heap where a knoll is to be seen to this day. A sloop boat 
was deposited in the swamp on the north side of the road lead- 
ing from Cape May Court House to Dias Creek, near where 
said road forks about two miles west of the Court House. 

Furman Erricson with his seven year old son William, 
was on the meadows near Delmont seeing the rush of waters 
approaching, put his son on his back and before they reached 
the upland the water was nearly to his armpits and he was a 
tall man. 

David High, father of Andrew, Sarah who married 
John Bench then second a Mr. Feaster, David, Jacob, Ezekiel, 
Malachi, John and Mary, who married Samuel Errickson, 
leaving Calvin, Amelia and Mary was at Pierces Point helping 
to load a vessel with wood. The job completed, he started 
to walk home as the tide began to rerise. When he reached the 
main bay shore road one mile from the bay, the tide had come 
in so fast as to overflow the public highway and soon the 
waters of the ocean and bay met. This younger Mary's chil- 
dren are the Misses Hattie, Sarah, Helen and Elizabeth Fid- 
ler of Dennisville. 

Ishmael Armor lived with Jeremiah Ludlam seven years. 
During the September gale he had occasion to go to the barn 
on what is now the William S. Thomas place, and found the 
tide from the ocean running under it. Soon the tide crossed 
to the farm lately purchased by Clarence McGraw, crossed its 
field, then on to Siggtown, hence to Mape's mill, thence on 
down Nancy's creek till it met the water of old Delaware Bay. 
Ishmael was a truthful, reliable, old trustworthy African, one 
of the last of Cape May county slaves. 

Joseph Ludlam Hand, father of Deborah, the wife of Ed- 
ward Devaul, Sr., and grandfather and great grandfather of 
the Devaul's now living at Ocean View, died in the great Sep- 



73 

tember gale. His tombstones may be seen at any time on the 
property then owned by himself. 

John Gandy, St., who was born in 1802, several times told 
his son Capt. Francis Gandy, how he himself was on the mead- 
ows at the time of the gale and came very near being engulfed 
by the fast rising tide before reaching the mainland. 

Mrs. Eliza Abbett was born in October, 1821. During 
this gale the roof of their house in Goshen was blown off, and 
often was she told that then her father carried her mother to 
the house now occupied by Joseph Kirkbride for safety. 

The day of this September gale Elijah Miller lived in the 
southern end of Dias Creek on the farm now owned and occu- 
pied by David Compton. The elements were so threatening 
that he walked north to the school house and asked for his 
children, Vincent and Mary. The teacher replied "Can't you 
stay a little while for we all will be going out soon. But Mr. 
M. repied, No, I wish my children immediately and advise you 
to dismiss all the pupils at once and not wait until the regular 
closing hour." This advice was heeded. One of Mr. M.'s 
. children started to go home a short cut through the woods 
but as the limbs and tree tops were breaking off, fearing they 
might be killed thereby, hustled them homeward by the main 
road as fast as their feet would carry them. Looking back as 
they went up the hill south of Dyers Creek causeway, they 
saw great waves capped with foam rolling where they had 
walked but a few minutes before. 

Passing over Connecticut it seemed to leave the continent 
only to touch New Hampshire by blowing down barns and 
houses, a child sleeping on a bed, with the bed itself, was car- 
ried 150 rods and found dead. A hemlock log 60 feet long 
and three feet in diameter was raised from the ground and car- 
ried six rods. 



CHAPTER XXI. 
SWEET SIXTEEN. 

Miss Sarah Newton, a buxom, healthy Cape May lass of 
sixteen, lived during the war of 1812 with a family named 
Edmunds, when the British were in Delaware Bay committing 
such drepedations as they saw fit. As the British usually 
came ashore during the daytime to relieve the residents of cat- 
tle, sheep, etc., this family reasoned that as they were in need 
of additional provisions they could lengthen out the supply — 
in the way that always has been customary in South Jersey — 
by going fishing, and if they went by night the British would 
not molest them. 

As most of the men were away patroling, guarding, 
watching and manouvering to outwit the British and protect 
the countr}', this young lady and the colored servant girl vol- 
unteered to go along and help what they could in hauling the 
seine and gathering up the fish. Waiting until the hour of 
midnight to insure safety, they sally forth to Pierces Point, 
cast the net, bring a good haul to shore, and as they were 
gathering up the contents thereof, suddenly out of the cedars 
came the British, taking the fish and capturing these two girls 
as prisoners. 

Miss Sarah and the colored servant were kept for three 
months on one of the British ships, and while they were well 
used, they were compelled to act as housekeepers — probably 
better say shipkeepers. Often when making bread they would 
knead a whole barrel of flour without stopping. 

When the British were ready to sail to other parts, the 
girls were rowed to shore and given their freedom. August 
17, 1815, Sarah was married to James Corson, by Robert Ed- 
munds, justice. Her descendants are living about us today. 
They were Hetty, who married Moore Douglas (see Chapter 
XXIV) ; Jane, who married John Errickson, they moved west; 



75 

Mary, who married Jesse Grace; Sarah Ann, who married 
Richard Ross; Soniers Carson, who married Nancy Errick- 
son ; James Corson, who married Hettie Conover ; and Swain 
Corson who married Theodocia Corson. 

In after years this captive girl is remembered as Aunt 
SalHe Corson, an excellent nurse among the sick. 

Sarah Newton's parents were Nathan Newton who mar- 
ried Rachel Golden. They came from England but were mar- 
ried after coming to America. Her brothers and sisters were 
Nathaniel Newton, who married Elizabeth Irwin September 
21, 1820; Hannah Newton, who married Obed Cresse ; Hettie 
Newton, who married Elihu Barnett ; Martha Newton, who 
married Daniel Cresse. Elizabeth Newton had three husbands 
- — James M. Parsons, married April 19, 1823 ; Jeremiah Schel- 
linger, father of the late J. Henry Schellinger ; Levi Hand, 
father of Joseph and Elias Hand. Mary Newton married 
Thomas Taylor, him whom I knew as an old man in 1875, liv- 
ing in Nummytown. Her brothers, Benjamin and Nathan, on 
a voyage from Philadelphia to New Orleans, disappeared and 
it was always believed they were captured by pirates. Nathan- 
iel Newton and Elizabeth Irving's children were : Eliza who 
married Peters Errickson, Rebecca who married Ephriam Sloan; 
Marie, who married Samuel Sayre ; Sarah, who mar- 
ried Levi Hollingshead ; Nathaniel Newton and John Newton. 

Martha Newton and Daniel Cresse's children were : Abbie, 
who married Smith Hand ; Priscilla who married John Ker- 
nan, leaving Abbie, wife of Capt. Leonard Hand; Mary Ann, 
the first wife of Lieut. Samuel E. Douglass ; and John. 

Hannah Newton and Obed Cresse's children were Judith, 
the first wife of John Tomlin ; and Eliza, the wife of Joseph 
Camp. Sr. 



CHAPTER XXII. 



ALMOST NINETY-FIVE. 
MRS. ELIZABETH STITES. 

Miss Elizabeth Thompson who became the wife of 
Captain Adonijah Stites, April 19th, 1839, informs me 
that she was born July 4th, 1818. Her parents, James 
Thompson and wife Polly, a daughter of Daniel and Elizabeth 
Swain, lived near the scene of some doings by the British dur- 
ing the war of 1812, and after the English came into the capes 
one or more of their vessels came and anchored one-half mile 
above Fishing creek, outside the bars, off the shore of her late 
homestead. She further savs : "The next morning Capt. Bai- 
ley and officers of the British ship came ashore in search of 
food. My father and my husband's father had gone to drive 
the cattle to shelter back of the woods so that the British would 
not discover their whereabouts. Mother and two small chil- 
dren were left alone. She had just put in the spider to bake 
a loaf of bread, live coals being on the top as well as under the 
spider, that contained the bread. Then going to the door the 
British were so near she heard them laugh, and fearing they 
would burn the house she dashed water on the fire so there 
would be none convenient for them to use — for it was not so 
easy to produce fire then with flint and tinder as it is now 
with matches. 

When the older child, Charlotte, was awakened and told 
that the British were near, so frightened was she that ostrich 
like, she plunged headlong into a barrel of feathers with her 
feet sticking straight out above. Hustling her out of that and 
seizing the baby, James, and the children's clothes in one arm 
and leading the girl with the other hand to a thick clump of 
bushes, she hastily put on their garments. Then taking the 
baby in her arms and the other child by the hand crossed under 



77 

and along the worm fence to her grandfather, Richard Thomp- 
son's, who lived on his plantation, the farm that now adjoins 
on its south, tlje road that runs from Green Creek to Delaware 
Bay. 

Soon after leaving the house she spoke to Capt. Bailey, 
saying she hoped he was more of a gentleman than to interfere 
with children and ladies, and that if he took their cattle hoped 
he would be kind enough to leave them one milch cow so that 
the children, at least her baby, could have milk. 

The British took the sheep. Next morning grand-pop 
(Richard Thompson, said to be of Irish descent, and who came 
from Liverpool in 1750) started for the ship. Capt. Bailey 
gave him four lambs to bring back and asked the privilege of 
maintaining a brick oven on the shore in which to do their 
baking. The request being granted, they baked therein for 
three weeks but for fear that homes would be burned, a sharp 
lookout was kept by day and a guard stationed at night. 

The British burned four sloops in the bay. 

Mother lived to be 90 years old, and if God spares me 
until July 4, 1908, I too, will be 90 years old. How good. 

Mrs. Stites was the last survivor of ten children all but 
two of whom grew to maturity. She lived to be in her 95th 
year, dying at the Old Ladies' Home, Wissinoming, Philadel- 
phia, Pa., March 5, 1913, and was buried in the Baptist cem- 
etery at Cape May Court House, N. J. The grandfather once 
built or bought a vessel and named it the James (Jeems & Sary) 
and Sarah. In after years he or his son Richard or both moved 
to Cape May Court House and lived in what is now the home 
of Morgan Hand, Esq., corner of Romney Place and Main St. 

Since writing the above I have been told that the people 
of Fishing Creek neighborhood drove their cattle at this time 
east on Full Mill road over Full Mill bridge to the north side 
of Fishing Creek stream, then across Schellinger's run to an 
island like place partly surrounded by swamp, back and within 
some tall timber so the British would not find them, to a place 
in what is now called Green Splinter. Said place where the 



78 

cows were kept and guarded was for many days known as the 
Cow Pen. 

Not far from here and about 40 rods east of ex-Senator 
Robert E. Hand's farm house, used to be a mound that Johnny 
P. Izard who made his home here before 1850, and for many 
years afterward, declared to be the grave of King 
Nummy. Said spot is now hard to find ; but Dennis 
Fisher informs me that it is about half way between the homes 
of Coleman F. Fisher and Mrs. Joseph Hand under some large 
cedars. This Full Mill road is the old road that has been 
lately re-surveyed with a view to having it rebuilt, which would 
make a direct route from past the Frank E. Bate farm, Fishing 
Creek to Wildwood. via of Rio Grande. 




CHAPTER XXIII. 



SKIRMISH AT TOWN BANK. 

This article (found by Mr. Frank Learning in an old book 
he bought) written in lead pencil and signed "Reuben Town- 
send," a gentleman of veracity, was handed to me July 10, 
1913. I do not know that it has ever been published — Chas. 
Tomlin. 

Skirmish at Town Bank, Cape May County, N. J., during 
the war of 1812. 

He writes : "Allow me to relate to you some of the details 
of a battle or skirmish that took place at Town Bank, Cape 
May County, N. J., during the war of 1812. 

"As I trust you know Joshua Townsend, my father, was 
commander in chief of the Cape May brigade during the time 
that Commodore Barresford had the Delawore bay blockaded 
by a squadron from the English navy. My father having 
Jearned of this blockading squadron had marched his troops 
down into a beautiful grove about midway from Cold Spring 
to Town Bank and there encamped. Early one June morning 
in 1813, a dispatch came from Town Bank stating that gun- 
boats from Barresford's squadron had run a pilot boat on 
shore at Town Bank and they were purposing as they supposed 
to come with the armed boats and burn her. The minute men 
were at once put under "double quick" for Town Bank, find- 
ing there a natural fortification back of the sand hills in front 
of the stranded boat. It was soon noticed that a number of 
Barresford's gunboats were rapidly approaching the pilot boat. 
The troops were kept from view until the enemy came so near 
that the sentinel could see the whites of their eyes. Then the 
command was given "Take steady aim and fire." Soon it was 
seen that quite a number of the enemy were killed and a large 
number wounded. 



80 

"The pilot boat was owned by Cape May pilots and was- 
partly loaded with flour and provisions. My father learned 
afterward from a newspaper sent to him from Holland, that 
in this skirmish seventeen were killed and many wounded. 

"Father soon afterward had occasion to go aboard of 
Barresford's flag ship with the white flag to exchange prisoners 
and was treated, he and all his subordinates, with the greatest 
kindness by the Commodore. The accommodation ladder was 
richly carpeted and the best wines and refreshments were lav- 
ishly furnished. 

RUEBEN TOWNSEND 

Cape May Court House, N. J. 

Note — The above was related to me when a small boy by 

my father and is no doubt strictly true. 

The article further says : "I find that the following persons 
from Cape May Co. were soldiers in the Revolutionary war: 
Henry Young Townsend was my grandfather and a captain 
in 1777 ; John Townsend, my great-grandfather, was a soldier 
in the revolution ; James Willetts was a captain ; Henry Lud- 
1am was fist-lieut. in Captain Townsend's Company ; Christo^ 
pher Ludlam was second-lieut. in Captain Townsend's Com- 
pany ; Joseph Wheaton was second-lieut. in Captain Willetts's 
Company in 1777 ; Jacob Cresse was ensign in Captain Town- 
send's Company ; David- Hand was ensign in Captain Foster's 
Company in 1777; Henry Young was ensign in Captain Will- 
ett's Company. I also find that Thomas Stites, Humphrey 
Stites and Henry Stevens were all captains and that Jonathan 
Jenkins and Salathiel Foster were captains, and that David 
Edwards was first lieutena'ht in Capt. Willetts's company ; Jon- 
athan Bailey was first-lieut. in Captain Whildin's Company; 
Jesse Hand was paymaster, Cape May; Memucan Hughes 
from Cape May was paymaster in 1776, also commissary. 
Nathan Hand was quartermaster in 1777; Thomas Leaming, 
Adjutant Cap May Battalion in 1776; Eli EWridge, first-major 
Cape May Battalion in 1776; Henry Hand, lieutenant-colonel 



Cape May Battalion in 1776; Amos Cresse was lieutenant, and 
John Cresse captain. 

The following persons were privates in the Revolutionary 
War from Cape May : Robert Campbell, James Godfrey, Hir- 
am Chester, John Golden, Cornelius Corson, Jeremiah Hand, 
Darius Corson, Japheteh Hand, David Corson, Recompence 
Hand, Jacob Corson, Jesse Corson, Remington Corson, Par- 
menus Corson, Nicholas Corson, Levi Corson, Thomas Scott, 
Amos Willetts, Stephen Young, Uriah Young, all of the above 
were in Captain Willetts' company. 

The State Troops were : David Williams, Moses Errick- 
son. Coiistantine Hand, Cornelius Hand, David Hand, Eleazer 
Hand, James Plummer, James Schellinger, David Schull. Rich- 
ard Vanaman, Lawrence VanHook. Old Moses Griffing was 
in some company. 

Richard Somers, promoted to Colonel, was from 
Gloucester County, and was the father of Lieutenant Richard 
Somers a naval officer attached to the Mediterranean squadron 
of Tripoli, during the Algerian war in 1804, who fitted up the 
Ketch Intrepid that was blown up. He and all on board 
perished. 

Nicholas Keen was captain of the armed boat Friendship. 
Hope Willetts was captain of the privateer Black Jack during 
the Revolution. 




CHAPTER XXIV 



DOUGLASS. 

• Says the"Newark Evening News" of June 15, 1912: "On 
a building on South Broad Street, (Trenton, N. J.) erected 
where formerly the Douglass house stood, the following legend 
appears: "Here in the house of Alexander Douglass, Washing- 
ton called a council of war on the evening of January 2nd, 
1777, when the flank movement to Princeton was decided 
upon." Erected by the Trenton High School Class of 1903, 
on February 22nd, 1902. 

This Alexander Douglass, a revolutionary hero patriot, 
lived to the age of 115 years. 

The N. J. States Prison now stands on a portion of what 
was once Alexander Douglass's farm. He sold it for what 
was believed, at that time, to be a big price but soon after the 
sale the value of the Continental money depreciated so greatly 
that what he received for the large farm was almost nothing. 
He surelv knew the value of the expression "not worth a con- 
tinental". 

About 1800 Thomas Douglass, a son of the above named 
Alexander, migrated to Cape May County and settled first on 
what is now known as the Douglass field, which is a little t*^ 
the south of the old Tick Neck farm. two miles west of the 
Cape May Court House. 

January 25th, 1792 he, Thomas Douglass, of Burlington 
buys of George Hand, of Cape May, in the Middle Precinct 
on the Bay side. 270 acres of land for 400 pounds in gold or 
silver. Quit claims had been given from Absalom and John 
Hand to George Hand when the land had been sold to him by 
the sherifT from Benjamin Taylor to whom it had been con- 
veyed by Memucan Hughes who had bought it of Neri Hand 
who had heired it from his father Thomas Hand. 



83 

This Thomas Douglass, I, died October 26th, 1805, age 
about 50 years. His tombstone stands in the Baptist cemetery 
at Cape May Court House, N. J., but his body hes buried near 
the north Hue of that 270 acre tract in the northen end of the 
village of Dias Creek, N. J., on an elevation at the west of a 
turn in the public highway, that is a little to the south of the 
road that leads to the Cedar Hammocks where once were lo- 
cated two adjoining family burying grounds, those of John 
Hand and Thomas Douglass. 

This Thomas Douglass, I, had a wife Keziah. They left 
eight children : John, William, Joseph, Thomas H, Nancy or 
perhaps Nanc}^ Ann, Sarah, Eleanor and Keziah. 

1. John Douglass, a lieutenant, married Lydia Norbury 
(sister of Heath) September 16th, 1804. They left Lydia 
who married John Fox. Another daughter married and left 
a daughter Mary who married a Mr. Stetzer. John married 
(2) Mary Dickinson December 24th, 1809 (a doctor's 
daughter). John married (3) Rachel Hewitt May 1st, 1811. 
She bore him John who married Cornelia Crawford ; Shamgar 
who married Clarissa Eldredge ; Sarah who married Benjamin 
Springer ; Maria who married Reuben Stephens ; Eliza who 
married William S. Leaming ; Enoch who married Mary Ann 
— — ; Rachel who married Martin Clark, and Nathaniel who 
married Emma Foster. 

2 William Douglass (known in my day as Uncle Billy) 
was about 17 years of age when he came with his father's 
family as it moved to Cape May County. He, by trade, was 
a ship carpenter and at one time in his life built vessels on 
Sluice Creek and lived at Dias Creek on his plantation (now 
the Michael Cook farm is a portion of it), walking to and 
from his work. 

He it was who advised planting Quaker guns (gum logs 
shaped and painted to resemble cannon) from the Cedar Ham- 
mocks southward along the Delaware shore in 1812 to frighten 
off the British when they sailed into the bay so that the British 



84 

would not seize cattle and commit depredations as they were 
doing in other places. The ruse was successful. 

William Douglass married three times. First Mary Izard 
(July 3, 1809) by whom he had Thomas, II, who married 
Elizabeth Eldredge, December 27, 1838, and William, II, who 
married Sophia Hildreth January 15, 1840; and Judith, the 
first wife of Nathaniel Norton, and Marcy who died unmarried 
January 15, 1837, aged 27 years. This wife, Mary, dying Oc- 
tober 24, 1824, he married December 5, 1825, Deborah Hil- 
dreth, April 9, 1828. Achsah Hand became his last wife, she 
died November 6, 1873, in her 74th year. He died March 9, 
1869, in his 86th year. They left Rebecca, who married 
Franklin Ludlam, who left Franklin and Emma. Deborah H. 
who married Thomas Sayre; Ann F. who married George W. 
Benezett, and Joseph, who married Mary Garretson. 

Joseph Douglass married Mary Golden July 3, 1809, left 
Betsey Ann Douglass who married (1) Iran Curtis, and (2) 
Nathaniel Edwards. 

Thomas Douglass II (Uncle Tommy) who was a patrol- 
man of the Delaware bay shore in the war of 1812, married 
twice. 1st, May 31, 1812, he married Rebecca Hand. She 
left Achsah, who married Shamgar Hewitt; Recompence, who 
married Mary Hand ; Amos, who married Elizabeth Bush ; 
Moore, who married Hetty Corson ; Alexander, who married 
Matilda Smith ; Page, who married first Ruth Norton, 2d, Kate 

Silvers, nee Finley, 3d, Sarah . Uncle Tommy's second 

wife was Eliza Stites, whom he married August 15, 1835, She 
left Hannah, who married Frank Corn well, and Keziah, who 
married Joshua Robinson. 

Nancy Douglass married Anthony Smith, February 22, 
1810. In after years they moved to the west. Nancy once 
on horseback with a child in front of her going from their 
home which joined Nancy's creek (now often called Bidwell's) 
on the north to that of her father's, nearly a mile to the south 
fell through the bridge, horse, child and herself, and came 
very near being drowned, but David Patterson in time came to 



05 

their rescue and by much effort saved them all, but to this day 
the name Nancy's applies to the bridge and stream between the 
villages of Goshen and Dias Creek, because of said accident, 
the main cause of which was a very high tide. The causeway 
across the meadow here was raised a few years ago. but before 
that the tide has several times in the writer's lifetime, been 
covered with tide water to a depth of from two to four feet. 
It is said that the man who contracted to build the first road 
across here became financially wrecked because of the immense 
quantity of material it took to fill it; there seemed to be no 
bottom thereto. 

Sarah Douglass married Harvey Shaw February 14, 1815. 

Eleanor, or Ellen, Douglass married Joseph Foster (school 
teacher) January 30, 1817, and left Keziah who married Steel- 
man Robinson, and Ellen, who died unmarried, at a good ripe 
age. Joseph Foster was Dutch, and Ellen, his wife, is said to 
have had some Welsh blood, Keziah and Steelman 
Robinson left Douglass J., who married Jane James, and x\da, 
who married Samuel Earl. They have Elmer, Reed, Curtis, 
Leslie. Lewis, Lena who married a Mr. Zimmerman, Samuel, 
Evelyn, Edith and Charlotte. 

Keziah Douglass married Charles Wible and moved to 
the west 

John Douglass and Cornelia Crawford's children are: 
Eleazer Douglass, who married Josephine Allen, leaving Car- 
rie and John who married Edna Swain, and Arabella Doug- 
lass who married Harry Corson. Their children are Bessie 
that married Ferdenand Witt, Cora, Burton D. that married 
Lyda Springer, whose child is named James Burton; and 
Harry. 

Shamgar Douglass and Clarissa Eldredge's children are 
Lewis H., who married Sallie Fidler, leaving Clara who mar- 
ried Osmond Geary, and Phebe who married Leon Grace. 
Leslie married Mary Hall, leaving Percy, Josephine, Harold, 
May, Lula, Clara and Roxana (Annie) E. married George 



86 

Eklrcdge, leaving Lewis, Allen and Cora who married Reed 
Chambers. 

Allen Douglass, living today on the portion of that 270 
acre tract which when divided was set off to John Douglass I, 
Allen lives with his mother Clarissa, who is quite active at the 
age of 83 (Oct. 24, 1913) years. A refined, clear-minded lady 
whom to know is to love. The one and a half story part of 
the house in which they live and the one and a half story of 
the first house to the south that is on the opposite side of the 
road, were formerly one and stood a little to the south of this 
one near the two big pear trees, for when the property was 
divided, a brother each took one-half of the homestead with 
his share of the land and each built a two story and a garret 
to the part taken. A walnut cupboard eight feet high four 
feet wide twenty inches deep stands in this home. It was 
brought to Cape May w^hen Thomas Douglass I moved here 
from Trenton, N. J. 

John Douglass married Hattie Rice. 

Shamgar H. Douglass, a railroad conductor on some 
steam railroad near Salt Lake City, Utah.. 

Sarah Douglass and Benjamin Springer's children were: 
Jesse, who married Emma Shropshire and left Wilburt, who 
married Carrie Garrison leaving Charles and Emma ; and Ma- 
mie married Charles Mixner and left Jesse, Keziah, Hannah 
who married Frank Wallace ; Benjamin Franklin who married 
Mrs. Mary Townsend nee Tomlin. They left Frank, May, 
Marcus, Clara. 

Mariah Douglass and Reuben Stephens' children are: 
Charles, Amassa, Adaline, Elizabeth, Lydia, Anzineta. 

Eliza Douglass and William S. Leaming's children were : 
John D., Furman, Edward, Cassie, Pennington, Bennington, 
Emma, Lizzie. 

Enoch Douglass and Mary Ann's children are Rachel, 
Millie, William, Charles. 

Rachel Douglass and Martin Clark's children are John, 
Robert, Cora and Rachel. 



.87 

Nathaniel Douglass and Emma Foster's children are 
Shamgar who married Mary Schellinger ; Emma Jane and 
Ada. 

Thomas Douglass and Elizabeth Eldredge's children are 
Samuel E. (a lieutenane in the Civil War) married Mary Ann 
Kernan, of whom is Dr. John Douglass who married Edna 
Collins, and Francis Douglass who married Achsah Hand, 
leaving Thomas Holmes Douglass who married Emma C. 
Tomlin, having Holmes Tomlin Douglas, Francis Douglas, Jr. 
Mary Emma who died age one week, Samuel Townsend Dou- 
glass. Augusta who married Wilbert F. Bateman leaving 
Fannie, Harvey and Mary. Percey L. married Mamie Nor- 
ton ; they have Robert Stanley and John Warmuth. 

H. Freeman Douglass married Josephine Schellinger ; she 
left George who married Jennie Smith, leaving Mary, Donald, 
Wallace, Cathaline, Margaret. Belford married Alice Bea- 
trice Boyd, leaving Josephine, Alice May, Freeman. Nelda 
married Charles Cinder, leaving Douglass and Wilbert. Han- 
nah. Howard Douglass married Maggie Bingham. Thomas 
Reeves Douglass married Annie Powell. ^lary Isard Doug- 
lass married Burton Lee Howell, leaving Elwood who married 
Bertha Norton, leaving Edna, Raymond(who was drowned), 
Beatrice, Leroy, Burton, Howard, Norman. Clarence who 
married Melicent Tomlin, they have Esther Ruth. 

William Douglass and Sophie Hildreth's child was Wil- 
liam H. Douglass who married Eliza Candy, and they left a 
son Walter E. Douglass who married Hattie Garrison whose 
child is named Ethel. 

Deborah H. Douglass who married Thomas Sayre left 
Mary who married William Garretson a son of Nelson and 
Eliza. They have one daughter Alice who married Joseph P. 
Mackissic, their children are J. Fred., William G., Anna Kath- 
erine. Nelson G., Mary G. Dr. Jeremiah E. Sayre who mar- 
ried Lizzie — — , their children are Charles, Wm. Edith, Annie 
B. Sayre who married Rev. James B. Shaw and they left Wal- 
ter Y. who married Elsie Hand, who left J. Clinton and Ellen 



88 

H. William D. Sayre who died when a young man unmarried 
Rebecca Douglass who married Franklin Ludlam left Frank- 
lin, Emma and Achsah who died young. 

Ann F. Douglass married George W. Benezett; their chil- 
dren are Laura S. who married Township Clerk A. T. D. 
Howell, and Mary Ella who married Capt. Charles P. Vana- 
man our late surrogate. They have one son, Stanford. 

Joseph Douglass married Mary Garretson daughter of 
Nelson and Eliza, they left Judge Harry S. Douglass whose 
first wife was Eleutheria Smith, his second, Marion Wheaton 
who left Wheaton Douglass and John Branin Douglass, his 
third, Mrs. Hattie Edwards nee Smith. Theresa Douglas who 
married Daniel W. Kendall. Nelson G. Douglass who mar- 
ried Adella Mason leaving Nelson Granville, Gideon and The- 
resa Isabel. Gideon Douglass. Eliza Douglass married 
Capt. Robert Thompson, Jr. Joseph Douglass married Han- 
nah Stiles, they have Charles who married Eloise Valiant, Her- 
bert S., Olive, George, Joseph. 

Achsah Douglass and Shamgar Hewitt left Rebecca D. who 
married Elmer Willets, they left Shamgar, Eva who married 
Harry Tuttle leaving Edward, Elmer, Horace, Charles. Ach- 
sah married Alexander Schellinger and left Rita. 

Recompence Douglass married Mary Hand and left 
Emma Jane who married George Ramsbottom, Amos, Rachel 
who married James Muncey leaving Freeman, William Clem- 
ents, Mary who married George Taylor leaving Walter. 
Freeman, Lizzie who married Mr. Robertson, Rebecca married 
George Roberts leaving a son George. Amos Douglass mar- 
ried Elizabeth Bush. Moore Douglass married Hettie Corson 
and left Ellen who married Robert Errickson, they left De- 
borah who married J. Clement Foster leaving Roy, Frances 
Celestine, Arthur Everett. Hettie who married Frank Nich- 
ols, leaving Erma who married Edward Taylor ; Marion and 
Boyd. Robert who married Anna Gandy leaving Florence. 
Caroline who married Stacy Tyler leaving William J. who 
married Mary H. Holmes leaving William Boyd. Susan C. 



89 

who married Charles R. Holmes leaving Charles Wendell and 
Mildred Caroline. Lydia who married Lemuel Thurston 
leaving Charles, Benjamin, Martha, Lemuel and J. Willets. 
Laura who married Elmer Cox leaving Alexander, Ralph, El- 
mer and Douglass. Alexander who married Malinda Smith 
that died June 7, 1913, leaving Edgar who married Marietta 
Stites who left Etta and Nora. Alexander who married first 
Abigail Cresse, 2d Maud Hand who left Georgiana May. 
Malinda M. who married David McPherson leaving Mildred 
Irene, Edgar Stanley and Frank Bate. George Anna who 
married 1st, Joseph Heritage leaving Justin who married C. 
Edward Hughes leaving Walter (2) Thompson Fennimore 
Justina. • 

Page Douglass married Ruth Norton (1), they had Tho- 
mas, Orrin, Theodore, James, Rebecca who married Edward 
Wheaton and left Fannie, Monroe, Keziah, Frank, Ruth, (2) 
Page Douglas married Kate Silvers, 3d Sarah — — . Hannah 
Douglass married Frank Cornwell and left Sallie, Lida, Frank, 
Lot, Tillie, Charles. Keziah Douglass married (1) Joshua 
Robinson who left Nula; Keziah Douglass married (2) Mr. 
Parsons. 




CHAPTER XXV. 



A HEROINE.-WHERE I'D LIVE.— OUR ALBINO 

Miss Augusta Willets, now the wife of Dr. Charles E- 
Edwards, and a daughter of Dr. Reuben Willets and Hannah 
Brick, writes: 

John Willets (my great great grandfather) came from 
Wales and settled at Willets Point, Cape May County, N. J. 

My great grandfather, James Willets, lived at Beesley's 
Point and had five sons, all taking an active part in the Amer- 
ican Revolution, except my grandfather Nicholas, who at that 
time was too young. James Willets married Rebecca the dau- 
ghter of Nicholas Stillwell. She was a great Whig during 
the war of the Revolution, and a bit of history is connected 
with her as a heroine. 

When left alone one day and being, as was the usual cus- 
tom of all the settlers, on the lookout, while using the spy- 
glass she discovered an armed barge in the bay filled with red 
coats. Soon they were seen rowing straight for her house. 

The cannon already loaded, stood on the river's bank ; on 
came the British and when they were within one-half mile of 
the Beesley's Point Hotel (bought of Mr. Golding by Nicholas 
Stillwell in 1750) she ran up the Stars and Stripes. She then 
hastened for and returning with a firebrand fired off the can- 
non. The grape shot was seen to fall thickly around the boat. 
The men fell flat. Soon the boat turned and put to sea. How 
many were killed or wounded or what became of the boat was 
never known. Their property and perhaps her life was saved 
by her daring act. She lies buried in the Stillwell burying 
ground at Beesley's point. 

Mother also used to tell about the British stopping at 
great-grandmother Elfreth's, near Haddonfield, and stealing 
money and also some silver spoons that were hidden in an ojc 
clock. 



91 

WHERE I'D LIVE. 

Let me live in the home where it's glad mistress sings 
Let me live in the home where the boy's whistle rings 
Let me live in the town where the choir's up to date 
And can furnish a sweet singing girl for my mate. 

Let me work in the place that's lighted by the sun 
Let me work with the friend who in his work finds fun 
Let me go to the Church where they sing from the heart 
And the instrument's music is drowned from tV^e start. 

Let me strive for the home of the good and the blest 
Let iue live for the land where my soul shall find rest 
Let me live so that others may find their way there 
And bask in the pure realms of God's diadems fair. 



OUR ALBINO. 




Samuel Humphries 

Notice the picture of Samuel Humphries (an Albino) the 
only one living in Cape May County. 

Webster says : "An Albino is any person of preternatural 
whiteness of the skin and hair, and a peculiar redness of the 



92 

iris and pupil of the eye. The term was originally applied by 
the Portuguese to the white Negroes they met with on the 
coast of Africa." 

Samuel, born of colored parents at Cold Spring in 1839, 
is the son of Peter Humphries and his wife Kezia Coachman. 
Samuel's sister Ann Maria, died unmarried many years ago. 

Another sister Hester (Hetty) Humphries, married Ben- 
jamin Obekiah, and they had three children, Benjamin, Jr., 
William and Kezia who married James Brown, a carpenter. 
They have a child named Frances. 

Hester was born in 1835 and died in 1906. She, Samuel 
and Ann Maria were all Albinos, but no other descendant has 
turned out to be so. How many Albinos are there in New 
Jersey? How many in the United States? 




CHAPTER XXVI. 



A PRISONER IN DIXIE. 

The article by Samuel Springer, Esq. (who died in 1877), 
is today, July 10, 1913, in my possession loaned to me by his 
daughters. We think it has never been printed before al- 
though dated December 9, 1867, and said to be written for 
Foster's War History of New Jersey. — Chas. Tomlin. 

At the beginning of the war with Great Britain in 1812, I 
was 12 years of age. My father, Jesse Springer, was an offi- 
cer in the militia, and during that war was actively engaged in 
the defence of our County against the repeated attacks on the 
shore, mostly made for plunder, such as carrying off stock, 
etc., by the enemy from their ships of war lying in the mouth 
of Dela.ware Bay. During those alarms my business was to 
issue arms as they came for them taking their names and then 
to see that they were safely returned when the alarm was over. 
Those arms were furnished by the state. The last year of the 
war being then in my fifteenth year, I joined the first artillery 
company of Cape May under Captain Furman Learning. At 
the age of 22 I was appointed captain of that company and 
continued with the militia until disbanded, I think about 1828. 
Thus what I saw of the war of 1812 and my connection 
with a volunteer company of artillery, gave me somewhat of a 
military spirit which has never left me. At the breaking out 
of the rebellion of 1861, it was thought by many that New Jer- 
sey might become the battlefield, it being a border state, and 
our County being in sight of the slave state of Delaware, we 
naturally began to look around to see what means there was 
for defence, and soon discovered they were poor indeed. 

My grandfather, Samuel Springer, served during the Revo- 
lutionary war and was a commissioned officer for the New 
Jersey line and fought under General Washington. 

At a meeting held at the Court House, I was appointed with 



94 

a number of others to call together those who were able to bear 
arms. But the thing did not seem to take and it was aband- 
oned, especially when we found the rebels could not take Wash- 
ington and that the war was likely to be confined to the line of 
the Potomac. Some of the young men in my immediate 
neighborhood caught the fire and requested that I would form 
them into a company which was done and they continued to 
drill once a week until the call was made for the nine months 
men, when the foremost of them joined the regiment and 
served out the time of their enlistment, with credit to them- 
selves and an honor to their county and state. Several of them 
re-enlisted and served during the war. 

I have written the above mostly as an introduction to my 
experience in the grent rebellion before it was brought to a 
close. 

As the war progressed and often looked dark indeed, I 
did what I could in the way of encouragement, both by pre- 
cept and example, and nothing kept me from entering the ser- 
vice but the weight of years. I was ofifered the captaincy of 
a company that was being raised but declined for fear that I 
might be in the way of some one who was better able to bear 
the hardships and trials of a campaign. 

I was appointed Deputy Provost Marshal by Colonel 
Johnson and served for a while in that capacity to the best of 
my ability. As the war went on I was alive and anxious for 
victory to crown as it eventually did, the great struggle for the 
life of the nation. 

In February, 1865, I received an appointment from Cap- 
tain Kimble, A. 0. M., at Newbern, N. C, to take charge of a 
detail of men for the purpose of raising some of the many 
sunken vessels in the vicinity of Newbern and its adjacent 
waters. I acordingly proceeded hither and reported for duty 
the 10th of March, 1865. During that month I was employed 
in making preparation for the prosecution of the business I 
was appointed to perform. On the second day of April I re- 
ceived written instructions to proceed the next morning on . 



95 

a steamer which was going up the Neuse river. This 
boat was to carry me with 22 negroes to a barge that had been 
sunk by being towed up the river. Tliese vessels with a great 
number of others were engaged in carrying suppHes to Gen- 
eral Sherman's army which was then at Kenston. We pro- 
ceeded accordingly and was put on board the wreck 20 miles 
from Newbern April 3d, at 12 o'clock. There was some talk 
that the Rebs were prowling about on the north side of the 
river. But as the man who had charge of the wreck had been 
there ten days, had neither seen nor heard any enemy, I did 
not apprehend any danger so proceeded to enter upon the work 
I was sent to accomplish. 

The steamer having gone on up the river, I together with 
the captain of the barge and the darkies were left to prosecute 
our work and be ready to go back the next day with the stea- 
mer on her return. We passed the day and night without see- 
ing any one or hearing anything to disturb us except an occa- 
sional screech or hoot owl which sounded quite omnious as it 
came booming through the cypress and the pines which are the 
growth of the swamps that border the river on the north side 
that being the side on which the wreck lay. Tuesday morn- 
ing, April 4, the sun rose clear and beautiful ; we ate our 
breakfast and all seemed going on well. We thought the 
steamer would be along about noon. By ten o'clock we had 
finished up our work and was sauntering about some on the 
barge, others on the banks, when of a sudden, like a clap of 
thunder from a clear sky came the report of a dozen rifles, 
some of the balls coming so near their sound was anything but 
pleasant. I was sitting on the after part of the boat and look- 
ing up saw them reloading their pieces ; of course there was 
nothing to do but surrender, and I accordingly did so. Some 
of the men jumped overboard and were swimming for the 
other shore. I told them they had better return, fearing they 
would be shot, so they returned. 

The rebels had come down an old road which struck the 
river at a short distance above where we were, and then crept 



96 

along through the swamp behind the big trees which stood 
thick on the banks of tl'.e river. One of the darkies was cap- 
tured and they compelled him to tell all about who we were. 
They knew we had no means of defence hence the firing must 
have been to gratify that desire the rebels have manifested 
during the whole of the rebellion, to let no opportunity slip to 
kill a Yankee. 

They were twelve in number, headed by their captain with 
his orderly sergeant. After having secured the negroes that 
were on the shore, they jumped on board of a plank from the 
shore to the boat. The captain came to me and ordered me on 
shore. I, not thinking it worth while to be in such a great 
hurry, he informed me if I did not move faster that he would 
knock my brains out. Thinking by that means to put me on 
the double quick. I however was still a little sulky and slow 
which caused me to get several broad hints . and that in not 
the most polite manner either. 

They seemed to be in the greatest hurry imaginable, so 
much so that they left considerable plunder they might 
otherwise have saved. I afterward learned that they were 
afraid that their firing might attract some of our gunboats, 
two or three of which were patrolling the river. They, how- 
ever, soon gathered up what they found, set fire to the barge 
and started us on a march through the swamp and then 22 
miles to the camp at Greenville. The first third of a mile was 
over an old tressle work where the water was waistband deep, 
and many were the curses and threats the poor negroes got if 
they wet the luggage they were carrying. At length we 
reached the solid ground and being out of the reach of the gun- 
boats, the word was given to halt. Then came an overhauling 
of the plunder and search for more. Thinking I might pos- 
sibly have something about me they had not yet seen, I was 
ordered to turn my pockets inside out. They found to their 
delight, some articles that they thought might be of use to 
them. Indeed it would seem as if there was nothing but what 
they stood in need of from a needle to a steam engine. They 



97 

however took all they could find about us, although not of 
large amount yet more than I liked them to have. If I could 
have helped it. 

In my pockets they found pocket-rule, pencil, knife, mem- 
orandum book, twelve dollars in greenbacks. In my carpet- 
bag a full suit of clothes I had brought with me for a change 
in case I got wet. They also got from me two new United 
States blankets, umbrella, etc., amounting in value to over $100. 
They took nothing from me I had on, that was reserved for 
another picking. This through with, we were ordered for- 
ward, so we passed along. In passing a house we 
saw some females cheering and making demonstrations of 
joy at our expense. About ten o'clock we met a company of 
rebel soldiers going down the road. This squad I afterward 
learned reached the river three or four miles below where we 
were captured and burned two steamboats and several schoon- 
ers. The men on board of one of them showed fight, for this 
they were taken on shore and hanged. About four o'clock 
we halted at a farmhouse. The captain and his sergeant went 
in and ordered dinner, after which myself and the Irishman, 
the captain of the barge, were invited in and seated at the table. 
I did not feel much like eating, my thoughts were too busy try- 
ing to penetrate the future and see when all this would end, 
and I must confess the more I tried to penetrate the future 
the darker it looked. Here I was a prisoner among the rebels, 
the very name of which had become a terror throughout the 
land. The thought of the news of my capture reaching my 
wife and children, everything uncertain to them as to what had 
or would become of me, was well calculated to give one feel- 
ings of not the most agreeable kind. At any rate I did not 
feel like eating a very hearty dinner, but was somewhat amused 
with the old farmer, a man of some 60 years in addressing the 
sargeant he said : "I have always been opposed to the war, and 
have said we should be whipped, and I still believe so." The 
sargeant said : "Oh, no ; you'll see, said the farmer, and that 
before long too. Why here is Sherman now at Kenston," and 



98 

I am looking for some of his men down this way every day 
and they'll skin you out of your boots." I began almost to 
tremble for the old patrot for fear they would take him up for 
a traitor to their cause. 

After dinner we proceeded on our march reaching 
Greenville an hour after dark. There was no small stir among 
the rebs on our arrival. All wanting to know where we were 
from, where we were captured, what we were doing, and a 
thousand questions more. 

There was one circumstance which occurred during our 
march which I think worth mentioning. The white man that 
was captured with me was in the employ of the government, 
receiving good pay and at times was entrusted with the care 
of supplies to a large amount, yet that man at the first oppor- 
tunity he got to speak with the captain commenced in this 
style : "I wish this d — d war was over ; I was always opposed 
to it ; nothing but a d — d nigger war and ought to be stopped," 
and a great deal more of the same kind of talk. I felt like 
kicking him but thought it best to say nothing. The rebs lis- 
tened to his palaver but I do not think he made very great im- 
pression in his favor, certain it was he had none shown him. 
There is no doubt but there was too much of such talk as that 
by many of our men who came in contact with the rebels, all of 
which helped to encourage them and prolong the struggle. 
When we arrived in camp we were shown the ground we were 
to occupy during the night; nothing said about rations, 
although the negroes had had nothing to eat since breakfast. 
I lay down under a large pine tree, the root of which served 
for a pillow. The night passed and morning came which only 
brought with it a more keen realization of our condition. 

They gave us some corn cake and a little bacon for our 
morning meal, which would have been relished by the darkies 
had there been three-quarters more of it in quantity. The ad- 
jutant of the regiment seemed to be an officer who had not lost 
all feeling for humanity, gave pen, ink and paper and I wrote 
two letters in hopes they might find their way through the 



99 

line which they never did until Johnson surrendered. About 
eight o'clock we were put in charge of four mounted men with 
two revolvers each and started on a march of thirty miles for 
Tarborough. About twelve o'clock we passed a company of 
rebel cavalry; they were dismounted and their horses were 
browsing through the bushes. Nothing special occurred dur- 
ing our march unless it was the taking from me a new pair of 
water boots and cutting the buttons from my coat which they 
said they wanted for making finger rings. In exchange for 
the boots they gave me an old pair of shoes more than an inch 
too short. I had to cut the uppers all out at the toe so as to let 
my foot out so as to get them on. After a long, weary journey 
under a hot sun, and over a sandy road, at length reached our 
destination tired and footsore, glad to lie down in any place 
they would permit. That night we were put in prison, and a 
filthy place it was. The negroes were put in an ordinary room 
and some of their owners came to see them. Loud were the 
curses and threats which we could plainly hear. I saw them 
no more until my return to Newbern, when I met most of them 
rejoicing in their freedom. The next day we were put on the 
cars for Wellden ; as we were getting on the cars I saw a col- 
ored woman, with some boiled shad and corn cake, having had 
nothing to eat since the morning before, I called her to me, she 
asked three dollars for a lunch, I purchased two, one of which 
I gave the Irishman and paid her out of the money my captur- 
ers gave me for the green backs they took, remarking, at the 
time, they did not want a man's money for nothing. The fish 
and cakes were excellent and were the only good victuals I had 
while a prisoner. The cars started and we soon arrived at a 
station on the Wilmington and Wellden R. R., .called Rocky 
Mount, here we were put off for some two hours. At this 
place a man they called Doctor, did not learn his name and 
glad I did not. Being told who we were, he said 
we ought to be hung on the spot, said men that were soldiers 
had been forced into the service which he seemed to think was 
the case with all our troops. They were deserving and ought 



iC 



100 

to have some mercy shown them, but civilians who would en- 
gage in carrying supplies to Sherman's army ought to be hung. 
But it ended in talk and we were permitted to pass the first 
tree without being hung while the doctor was ventilating him- 
self. Then came a car in from Richmond bringing news that 
General Grant had captured Richmond, but as they said the 
man was a notorious liar they professed not to believe it. I 
heard the man's story and made up my mind it was true. He 
said when he left the}^ were carrying papers by cart loads into 
the street in front of the capital where they were being burned 
What a tale those papers and documents might have told could 
they have been saved. We soon started for Wellden where 
we arrived a little after sunset. Here we were brought before 
the Hon. the Rebel Pro'v. Mar. and subjected to another 
search and robbery. By this time I had ripped the seams in 
the legs of my pants and in the sleeves of my coat by which 
means I saved them. They however took what they wanted 
even the balance of the rebel currency that was on me, I 
thought that was a little too mean even for a rebel. That night 
we were put in what they called a guardhouse and furnished 
with corn cake and raw bacon, being the third meal they had 
furnished us up to the evening of the third day after our cap- 
ture. That evening we had an addition of three to our num- 
ber, two from Grant's and one from Sherman's. The one 
from Sherman's army was stripped of every thing except his 
shirt and pants and the poor fellow was shivering with the 
cold. He was from Ohio and had been with Sherman during 
the long campaign through Georgia. 

The next day came news that a strong force from Grant's 
army was advancing and the whole place was thrown into a 
terrible commotion. There were some rebel soldiers in the 
place, but to make any resistance seemed to be the last thing 
thought of. They hurried off their artillery to a place of 
safety, filled the long bridge over the Roanoke with turpentine 
so that it might burn quickly when a match was applied and 
made every preparation to get aw^ay as fast as possible. I 



■••i 



101 

began almost to hope they might, in their hurry and great per- 
plexity, forget us so we might probably escape. We stayed 
there two days during which time the upper bridge was burned 
and I understood the lower one the day after we left. We were 
put on the cars and started for R. (likely Raleigh), the cars 
were full of rebs fleeing, in the seat near me was a Virginian, a 
member of the legislature, of course all the conversation was 
about the war. Richmond was captured, but that was nothing, 
it should have been given up long ago, now they were free to 
act, did not have Richmond to defend, General Lee would fall 
back to the mountains and carry on the war to an indefinite 
period. The legislative man in speaking of the probability of 
the war being brought to a close remarked there was little 
chance of that as one of the conditions that were exacted by 
the North was that the South should pay the whole expense of 
the war. This was news to me, I thought I was fairly well 
posted in the leading questions bearing on the subject and I 
had never heard such a thing mentioned, so I told him that I 
did not believe such a thing had ever entered the minds of any 
of our statesmen ; at any rate I was certain that it had never 
been made public. But he seemed firmly to believe it. I sup- 
pose it was promulgated by the rebel leaders in order to make 
the people of the South more bitter and so prolong the war. 
One tali, lank and lean fellow, evidently one of the poor white 
trash but who no doubt thought he was of some importance, 
accosted me thus: "What does yorn come down here to fight 
mens for, if you stay at home mens will not go to fight yorn" 
I told him the North were trying to save the South from their 
own folly. We arrived at R. (likely Raleigh) after dark and 
.turned into the prison pen without a thing to eat. The night 
was a stormy one, and not the least kind of a shelter, so I 
passed the night without lying down. In the pen were some 
30 or 40 prisoners and the next morning we had an addition of 
some 15 more. These men were all captured by being sent 
out from Sherman's army to relieve the necessities and desti- 
tution of many of the inhabitants who were in a starving con- 



102 

dition rendered so mostly by being plundered by the rebel 
army. Next day we were subjected to another search when 
they took from us anything of any value and gave us. their 
filthy rags in return. After this they issued some rations as 
they called it, which consisted of a double handfull of corn and 
cod meal, a piece of bacon the size of your two fingers, some of 
it nearly rotten at that. This was for 24 hours. When we 
were called up, woe be to the fellow who had nothing to put it 
in. Some used their shoes, some their hats if they were lucky 
enough to have one. Thus in various ways the scanty meal 
was secured. Then the thing was to cook it; we were pro- 
vided with no kind of cooking utensils whatever, and all kinds 
of methods were resorted to in order to get the stuff so it 
could be eaten at all. The meat we could put on a sharp stick 
and poke it in the fire, but to bake the cake was the thing and 
the result with me was I lost all realish for food. Having al- 
ways been used, to good clean food and plenty of it, but at such 
as this my stomach revolted, and I was scarcely hungry at any 
time during my captivity. During our stay here, which was 
four days, there were some acts of cruelty by the rebs towards 
some of our men. 

A young man by the name of Scott, for the alleged offence 
of using some unbecoming language towards the ladies of the 
South, was tried and found guilty and the court decided the 
offence was one that would warrant his being shot, but their 
tender mercies moved them to commute the sentence and he 
was brought into the pen, gagged and what they called busked. 
This was tying his hands together, making him sit on the 
ground with his tied hands locked over his knees, utterly un- 
able to move in any direction. He was compelled to remain in 
this painful position from 9 o'clock A. M. till 5 P. M., when he 
was released with the admonition that he was under great obli- 
gation to them that he had not been shot. 

Another man belonging to an Indiana regiment had a new 
pair of boots which he had refused to pull off the evening be- 
fore. Next morning about sunrise a lieutenant with two sol- 



103 

diers and loaded muskets came to him and he was ordered to 
pull off the boots. He not complying immediately, the officer 

said: ''You d rascal, pull off them boots or we will blow 

your brains out." The men seemed to be ready to carry the 
threat into execution and the man had to yield. I think if that 
lieutenant is ever caught out west by any of these boys they'll 
handle him rather rough. Once I was looking at one of the 
guards and thinking he was not the most intelligent specimen 
of humanity, he took from his pocket a whole ear of corn and 
commenced biting it off the cob like a hog, and continued to 
do so until the whole ear was devoured. Thinks I, if you are 
driven to such straits as that our chance for anything good to 
eat are not very flattering. During our stay here our number 
increased to 72, together with some seven or eight rebs who 
had been caught in the act of trying to desert. We repre- 
sented seven states : New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, 
Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Massachusetts, several from Ireland 
and two from Germany. At length came word to fall in, 
which order we could obey in short notice, not having much to 
encumber us we were marched to the depot and put into a box 
ear, 11 o'clock at night. We found the place was terribly 
filthy, and on the morrow I found the car had been used in 
carrying mules and had never been cleaned out. In this place 
we were kept some 15 hours, at length stopping at a place 
called Corn Shops. We were permitted to get out and some of 
the men shoved the manure out of the car. At this place were 
long trains loaded with cotton and being run off ahead of 
General Sherman, who was after them with a long stick. I 
saw them giving the cotton away to any one who could manage 
to get off into the woods. 

Then came the word that the Union Cavalry had cut the 
road in our part and we were ordered back to R (probably 
Raleigh) where we arrived in the middle of the night and 
marched to the old pen, arriving there we found everything 
deserted we were taken back to the depot to be ready for an- 
other move. Here we received word that Sherman's advance 



104 

guard was in the neighborhood and the town was being vacat- 
ed by Johnson's army. Next day we started again on the rail- 
road, this time putting us on top of the cars, all being filled to 
their utmost capacity. Thinking I might get pushed oft" the car 
I asked the guard the privilege of riding on a platform car 
which contained the brass pieces of artillery. On one of the 
guns I rode two days and one night. There were quite a num- 
ber of their guns on the train and splendid ones they were. 
We had not proceeded many miles before we overtook John- 
son's army, which we were several hours in passing. They 
were not marching on the railroad but on a parallel wagon road 
I could see them with their big guns stuck in the mud and the 
poor mules which were mostly skin and bones, receive terrible 
lashes because they were unable to draw them out. That day 
as we halted a few moments the guard saw a woman with a 
basket of cakes and pies for sale, he sent one of the men with 
rebel money to purchase some. The woman refused saying the 
money was not good, the man came back and made his report 
which threw the reb into a great rage, saying: 'T'll learn her 
better than that," ordered two men to go and take from her the 
basket, which they did without giving the woman any compen- 
sation whatever. The history of the rebel money was a little 
curious. Travel fifty miles by rail and the money w^ould pass 
without any trouble but it would take a basketful to buy a 
meal's victuals stay in that place two hours and you could find 
no one who would touch it. There came a boy with a few 
R — ^— papers, he asked ten cents Yankee money. "Haven't 
any I'll give you 50 cents confed. Don't want it. Why not. 
Because Sherman's at R — — , and he'll knock the whole 
thing in the head. One of our men said I would like to have 
one of your papers but I haven't any Yankee money I will give 
you this Confed. dollar for one. The boy looked at him and 
said: "Well, take it." The boy took the money and then com- 
menced tearing it up and throwing it on the ground. I 
said: "My boy, why do you do that?" He said; "It ain't 
worth its gone up." 



105 

Previous to this there were riimors that Lee had surren- 
dered, which was stoutly denied by the rebs. At length there 
came a man who had a paper giving an account of Lee's sur- 
render, and commenced to read it to the guard. We were not 
slow in trying to gain a position where we could hear, and as 
he read on giving a somewhat detailed account of the surren- 
der, our hearts swelled and it was with difficulty we could re- 
strain our feelings and amid our privations that was a joyful 
day. Finally the course was clear, the road having been re- 
paired, we were pushed on toward Salsbury which we had 
learned by this time was to be our final destination ; arriving at 
Greensboro we were taken off the cars and for several days 
were marched from place to place, hardly staying twelve hours 
at any point. At length we set out on a march for Salisbury. 
We had not been more than an hour on our way when we re- 
ceived to us, the joyful news that General Stoneman was be- 
tween us and that point. We were halted and soon retraced 
our steps to Greensboro. By this time Johnson's army began 
to arrive, we were put in a prison pen about a half mile from 
the town under a guard of eight and sometimes sixteen men. 
These men said they were heartily tired of the war and hoped 
it would soon be over so they could return to their families 
whom some of them had not seen for two years. Seeing they 
had no bayonets I inquired how it was, they said they were of 
no use and were thrown away more than a month ago. The 
truth was Sherman's men had given them a hint that they were 
not slow in taking. Sherman's men had adopted the plan of 
walking right up with charged bayonets and Johnny would be 
ofif in double quick, and so they came to the conclusion that 
bayonets were of no use. Their guns were rusty and every- 
thing betokened a disappointed and conquered people. There 
was nothing they had which looked like an army if you except 
the artillery. Their horses were mere skeletons; their wagons 
broken, many of them without any kind of cover ; the best were 
mere shreads flying in the breeze, yet these were the parapher- 
nalia with which they were going to conquer the great north. 



106 

Was there ever such stupendous folly? Jeff Davis passed 
through this place stopping a day or two in his flight south. 

It was remembered he had been paying off the soldiers in 
specie; I saw one man who was paid off, he received $1.10 for 
two years service in the rebel army. We had been over two 
weeks getting here ; had learned to lie down on the bare ground 
at night supperless and not complain, as that would have been 
useless. About this time we received the sad intelligence of 
the assination of President Lincoln. This was terrible; we 
tried to make ourselves believe it was a rebel canard, but alas 
it proved too true. I thought the rebs seemed to regret it 
quite as much as we did, saying Johnson would be harder on 
them than Lincoln. Now came news of an armistice between 
Sherman and Johnson, the terms of which were the south were 
to have their negroes and be restored to all their rights and 
privileges as before the rebellion. This was thought by some 
of our men to be glorious news. I told them if we did not 
have peace till we had it on those terms it would be long time 
coming. That the government would not accede to any such 
terms I was fully satisfied. The next news we heard on the 
subject was it had been rejected and Sherman was ordered 
forward. These were now anxious days and nights with us. 
We would lay and listen for Sherman's guns, hoping he would 
advance and give the rebs battle. Then came news of a new 
arrangement which proved more acceptable and was finally 
carried out. During all this time we were in a pitable condi- 
tion ; our clothing having become so dirty and filthy was not fit 
for human beings ; no improvement in the rations except the 
better means of cooking. The boys by borrowing and taking 
as their own had managed to get some fair cooking utensils. 
Even then the one that was behind could not get his breakfast 
before 12 o'clock. Once in two or three days they would order 
us to fall in and march us through the town for what purpose 
we never did learn. Wh;y they kept us at all was a mystery, 
as we seemed to be considerable trouble. 

Johnson and Beaureguard had their headquarters in a 



107 

railroad car and would make speeches nearly every evening. 
We could hear the rebs cheering. One of our men being dan- 
gerously sick with the measels, the guard offered to get him a 
doctor. During the day one came, dressed in rebel uniform, 
went up to the man, looked at him as he lay on the ground and 
said: "Well, you have the measels, sure enough," and walked 
away. Some few of the men ran away. The boy Scott, of 
whom I spoke, was the first. He went off soon after we got 
to Greensboro. We expected he had got safely away, but the 
day we were liberated, who should come among us but Scott. 
He tried for two days and nights to get through the rebel pic- 
kets posted about four miles below us. He came very near 
being captured, and finally had to give it up. If he returned 
to the post he might be shot, so he went into the town and asked 
a negro for something to eat which was granted, with the offer 
of keeping him in his loft till such time as he could get away. 
Here he was kept and fed for two weeks. Two of the others 
got off and we never heard from them, so suppose they got 
safe through. These were anxious days with me, the days 
seemed long and weary ; I was not sick, but was evidently los- 
ing my flesh so much so the men took notice of it. I seemed 
to have lost all relish for food. While the other men were 
suffering with hunger, I did not eat more than half that was 
dealt me. At last the time for our deliverance came Sunday, 
April 30th, 12 o'clock. Some of General Sherman's men find- 
ing us under rebel guard, told the guard to leave and we were 
free. Being permitted to walk out for the first time without a 
guard. I went to some negro quarters near by and asked for 
a cup of coffee ; told them who I was, and how I came there. 
The kind hearted darkey woman said she had no coffee but if 
I would come back in about twenty minutes she would give me 
a cup of tea. I was back on time, and to my agreeable sur- 
prise found some excellent tea with milk and white sugar, 
warm wheat cakes, and fried ham. It seemed to me as if my 
appetite had been pent up for a month, and was now set free. 
I never tasted such tea and came to the conclusion that tea 



100 

was much better than coffee, and drank nothing else for six 
months afterward. The word had gone out and there was 
quite a number collected to see the Yankee prisoners. The 
negroes were from Virginia, having been run off here so that 
they could be taken back when the war was over. I asked 
them how they managed to get such good things to eat. The 
woman said that Massy was always looking out, but if there 
was anything to be had we know how to get it. They then 
began to question me about their being free. Said they had 
heard that Massa Lincoln would have set them free but he was 
killed and they were afraid they would still be slaves. I told 
them not to fear, for as soon as General Sherman came in and 
took charge, they would all be free. This gave them grea^ 
encouragment, and they were the happiest creatures I ever 
saw. One old man said: "Oh bless de Lord; if I had wings 
I'd fly this minute." After partaking of this good meal, the 
first I had had for a month, I thanked them for their kindness 
and made my way back to the prison pen which was now near 
by we having been moved some three days previous. After 

we were liberated I went to the house of Mr. who had 

formerly lived at Camden, N. J. He had visited us several 
times ; said he was a Union man but was afraid to let his sen- 
timent be known ; remarking it would have cost him his life. 
At this time I wrote a letter to my family which reached them 
in five days. At 5 o'clock we started for R. (probably Raleigh) 
The night was stormy and being on a platform car the journey 
was not very pleasant, but the thought that I Vv^as free fcirui or, 
my way to my friends was enough. I could bear all inconve- 
niences which seemed small compared with the prospect before 
me. We arrived at R about four o'clock in the morn- 
ing. When it was light we saw the old United States flag 
floating over the rebel capital. I never saw it more glorious. 
This day, May the first, we were put into comfortable 
quarters where we had a chance to wash and clean up. I 
spent part of the day in reflection and thankfulness to God who 
had protected and preserved me all the way through, and had 



109 

delivered me out of the hands of the rebels whose tenderest 
mercies are cruelty. That night we started for Newbern and 
arrived there about six P. M. the next day. As I was not 
subject to military duty or order, I was not long in finding 
my boarding house that I had left one month before. My 
friends did not recognize me and would have refused me ad- 
mittance had I not made myself known. They were comple- 
tely horror struck at my appearance. Could it be possible 
that such an object of pity was one they had ever known be- 
fore? The women were soon alive to the severity of the case 
and I could see the tear start in the eyes as they looked at my 
pitable condition. 

My nephew, Dr. D. W. Hand, was medical director of the 
post, having by chance heard of my return was soon with me 
and gave directions for my treatment. In a few days I was 
attacked with the scurvy and it was several weeks before I 
regained anything like my usual health. 

THE TWO WAYS. 

If I will force my way through briers, mud and the black 
Black and mud will besmear me and the briers will scratch 

back. 
But if the prepared and open highway I will take 
I'll pass easily along, and no commotion make. 

So if I choose to travel with the bad and the wild, 
The devil will see to it that I'm harrassed and riled. 
While he who believes God and his prepared highway takes 
Passes sweetly along like a boat on smooth lakes. 

THE VICTORY SIDE. 

In every conflict, every fight 
Just ask which side is God's — ^the right, 
^nd then you know which side will win. 
Be it a year or be it ten. 



110 

That fact tells you which side to choose, 
It also tells which side will lose, 
Which side in time shall helped be 
And sing the song of victory. 




CHAPTER XXVI. 



A ROMANCE. 

At Cape May Court House north of the longest stream 
in Cape May County, Crooked Creek, at the southeast corner 
of the Ocean Boulevard and the Stone Harbor turnpike, are 
barns and sheds some of which are covered with the old dug- 
up shingles, and in others can be found the remains of a frame 
of large dimensions, perhaps 12x12 inches in width and thick- 
ness, yea, perhaps much larger, anyhow these buildings are 
the remains of an old home and additions thereto from one 
generation to another, from the time before Cape May was set 
oflf as a county (1692) until 1878, when it became the property 
of Mrs. Rebecca Ludlam and was sold by her heirs in 1909 to 
the brothers David, Reese P. and Howard Risley. 

Two hundred years ago when some parts of these build- 
ings formed the home of Cornelius Hand, Esq., they stood on 
the opposite side, i. e., at the southwest corner of the Stone 
Harbor branch of the Reading Railroad and Ocean Boulevard 
near where now stands the branch office of the South Jersey 
Realty Company. Here in this house was the First M. E. 
Church organization, consisting at first of twelve members, 
among them were Reuben Ludlam and Hannah his wife, Nor- 
ton Ludlam and Judith his wife, and Mrs. Mary Yourison. 

Very likely Mary Fifield (1803-1846) was another. 

This was the beginning of the society that afterward built 
and worshipped in the old Ebenezer Church that stood where is 
now the M. E. cemetery and which society is today represent- 
ed at the church that stands next to the County Court House 
on its north. 

This Cornelius Hand had two charming daughters, Ruh- 
ama and Amelia. In this home of Cornelius Hand was once 
a large gathering, an assemblage of more than ordinary occur- 
ence. A wedding ceremony of a daughter of the aristocracy 



112 

of Middle Township to a son of the same of Dennis, is about 
to be performed. The smiling bride, Ruhama, dressed in her 
silk is ready ; the groom with glowing pride stands waiting ; 
the minister with the ritual open is present; all was gayety, 
charm and eager expectancy among the guests within. 

But unknown to this company a sea captain has returned 
this very day to Beesley Point, N. J., the home of his parents, 
probably by the old slow stage coach of early days, or perhaps 
footsore from a long tramp, though he might have been set 
asore by some packet that entered great Egg Harbor. Any- 
how he is soon told of the wedding announced to occur this 
evening, and though tired and wayworn he hastily robes him- 
self in the best he at this time could command, procures a fast 
horse, springs into the saddle and rides in haste for Cape May 
Court House, likely down the old king's highway, hastening 
the steed with whip and spurs he nears the scene with but a 
few minutes to spare. 

Hark, hark, what was that? A foam covered horse gal- 
loping furiously stops in front. Its rider, of beautiful face 
and fine physique, dismounts. He asks for the bride. She 
looks, she sees her first and former handsome lover who had 
sailed foreign seas and for years had been given up as dead, 
returned, aliv.e, hearty. and present. She rushes to his arins, 
entwines hers about his neck, they exchange words and kisses. 
He tells of gales, headwinds, mishaps, trading disasters and of 
shipwreck upon the Spanish main. The wedding is oflf as the 
bride, true to her first love, declares I'll not marry Henry; I'll 
not marry Henry; I'll not marry Henry. The commotion and 
excitement this evening and for days afterward is beyond me 
to describe, but as was the custom of that day, the minister 
then asked: "Is there anyone present who will marry Henry?" 
Whereupon a fine young lady of excellent family, Hannah 
Smith by name, replied: 'T"ll marry Henry; I'll marry Henry; 
Henry I'll marry thee. And Henry replied "I'll marry thee, 
Hannah. So upon the evening of February 11, 1771, Ruhama 
Hand married the young sea captain Nicholas Still- 



113 

well and not Henry Ludlam, but the noble-souled gen- 
tleman that he proved himself to be to the end of his life (1752 
to 1837) acted the part of bridegroom and Miss Hannah 
Smith was bridesmaid, but Henry was so wounded that not 
until June 30th, 1772, did he consent to allow the wedding cer- 
emony that made Hannah his wife to take place. 

Both marriages proved to be most excellent matches and 
many of their descendants of today are of the very best of 
Middle, Dennis and Upper Townships families, and if I mis- 
take not some are in Lower Township, while others may be 
fomid living far, far, away from said scene. In after years 
the children of Hannah tell how near they came to being the 
children of Ruhama, or, in other words, how near X came to 
being Z, or Z came to being X. 

For the benefit of descendants we append the following: 
John Hand of Kent County, England, was in Southampton as 
early as 1644. His son Shamgar, settled at Cape May Court 
House about 1690, next in line likely comes Jeremiah Hand,. 
Esq., whose son Cornelius Hand was the father of Ruhama, 
who married Capt. Nicholas Stillwell, and also of Amelia 
Hand, who married John Ludlam, whose sons were Norton 
and* Reuben. 

Nicholas and Ruhama's daughter Jane married Daniel 
Whilden and left Amelia, Alexander and Danelia. AmeHa 
became the wufe of Samuel Springer. Danelia became the wif^ 
of Franklin Hand. Ruhama when a widow married Matthew 
Whilden. 

Of the other family Esq. Henry Ludlam, Sr., was a son 
of Joseph H, grandson of Joseph I. Hannah was the daugh- 
ter of Daniel Smith, tea merchant and trader with many coun- 
tries, and today there are China cups, saucers, punch bowl, etc.,. 
in- the families of this line which were brought from China 
and ports of other countries. 

Henry Ludlam, Esq., and Hannah Smith left Abigail, who 
married Joseph Falkinburge, who after her death married her 
sister Sarah. Abigail left Abigail, who married Jeremiah 



114 

Learning, leaving the Hon. Richard S. Learning. Daniel- 
Henry Ludlam, Jr., who married Mary Lawrence (daughter 
of James and Sarah). Joseph, who left Joseph and Isabel, 
who married Lewis Leaming. James married Jane Ritchie. 
Lewis married Jane Swayne. Hannah. Richard Smith Lud- 
1am that married Ellen Hughes 

Henry Ludlam, Jr., and Mary Lawrence's children were : 
Hannah S. Ludlam, who married William S. Townsend. 
Maria. Abigail F. Ludlam, who married George B. Stratton. 
Sarah Ann Ludlam , who married Humphrey Leaming. 
Eleanor Hughes Ludlam. Henry. Albert Henry Ludlam, 
who married Elizabeth Champion. Emeline. Joseph May 
Ludlam, who married Isabel Holmes, a daughter of Nathaniel. 




Conveyancer, Notary Public 
Commissioner of Deeds 



Office — Main Street 
Near Public Buildings 



Xeali^ S. XuMam 
IReal Bstat? anb ITnsurance 

Cape fllba^ Court Ibouse, 1R. 3. 

Bell Phone 9-11 

Abstracts of Title and Searches. Money to L,oan on 
Mortgage 

Fire Insurance Placed in All Parts of County in Best Stock 

Companies 



m mum 

For the Fitting of 

GLASSES 



Diseases of the Eyes given 
Special Attention by 

JULIUS WAY, M, D. 

At Wild wood, Edgeton Inn 

Building daily 
Except Monday and Friday 

CAPE MAY COURT HOUSE 

Office Hours 9 to 4. and by appointment 



First National Bank 

of Cape May Court House, N. J. 



Safe Deposit Boxes for Rent 
in burglar proof vault 



Three per cent, interest paid on 
time deposits 



William H. Bright. President 
William J. Tyler, VicePres't 
George Nichols, Cashier 



FOR SALE 

Whitewash Pumps and Spray- 
ing' Machines 

of Various Kinds and Sizes 

Spraying materials in Dry, Paste or Liquid Form for Trees, Plants, 
Vines, and all crops, by 

CHARLES TOMLEV 

CAPE MAY COURT HOUSE, N J. 

Also PAINTS, OILS, DRYERS, VARNISHES of any quality, kind 
or quantity. 

WAGON PAINT or Paint by the Barrel our Specialty. 

My Second Book 
vSoutH Jersey Spray 

Is in Preparation 

Parties having stories of State, County, Village or Family History 
or accounts and views of noted sights, might get them published- if 
forwarded to 

CHARLES TOMLIN 

CAPE MAY COURT HOUSE, NEW JERSEY 



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Bell Phone, Walnut 4477 




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Wm. F. Daniels 

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Drop a postal or phone 



Cape May Court House :: New Jersey 



Walter Hurrell 

Manufacturer and Dealer In 

aV^^^^tv HARNESS 

Lap Robes, Blankets, 

Whips, Etc. 

Repairing a Specialty 

South Main Street 
Cape May Court House, N. J. 



EDWIN Z. MILLS 
House and Sign 

PAINTING 

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Cape May Court House 
New Jersey 







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New Jersey Manager 

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A. D. S. DRUG STORE 



When in Court House make our Store your 
Headquarters. Leave your Packages to be 
called for. We will take good care of them. 
We are always ready to supply your wants 
in our line. 



WILLETS CORSON, Druggist 

Cape May Court House, N. J. 

Bell Phone No. 10 



stone Harbor 

Wonder City of the South Jersey Co. 

UPWARD OF $2,000,000 INVESTED IN SIX YEARS BY 
NEARLY 1000 PEOPLE 

LOTS FULLY IMPROVED AT AUCTION PRICES 

WRITE FOR ILLUSTRATED BOOKLET, MAPS, &C. 

South Jersey Realty Co. 

915 Real Estate Trust Building 

PHILADELPHIA, PA. 



OCT 4 191S 



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